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ENGRAVED  GEMS 


SIGNETS,  TALISMANS  AND  ORNAMENTAL 
INTAGLIOS,  ANCIENT  AND  MODERN 


BY 

DUFFIELD  OSBORNE 

Author  of  The  Spell  of  Ashtaroth,  The  Rohe  of  Nessus,  The  Lion’s  Brood,  etc. 
Editor  of  Livy’s  Roman  History,  Macaulay’s  Lays  of  Ancient  Rome 


WITH  THIRTY-TWO  FULL-PAGE  PLATES 


NEW  YORK 

HENRY  HOLT  AND  COMPANY 


1912 


Copyright,  1912, 

BY 

HENHY  HOLT  AND  COMPANY 


Published  August,  1912 


TO  MY  FRIENDS 

HARRY  L.  PANGBORN 

AND 

WILLIAM  GEDNEY  BEATTY 

TO  WHOSE  AID  AND  ENCOURAGEMENT 
THIS  BOOK  OWES  MUCH 


PREFACE 


During  the  Eighteenth  Century,  the  so-called  “Century  of 
the  Dilettanti”,  and  down  to  the  fifth  decade  of  the  nineteenth, 
no  branch  of  the  art  humanities  occupied  so  prominent  a  place 
as  did  the  study  and  appreciation  of  the  engraved  gems  of  clas¬ 
sic  times.  In  their  numbers,  in  the  perfection  of  their  preserva¬ 
tion,  and  in  their  intimate  relations  to  the  personal  lives  of  the 
old  Greeks  and  Romans,  they  appealed  alike  to  the  student  of 
archaeology  and  to  the  lover  of  antiquity  for  its  own  sake ;  while 
the  collector,  following  fast  in  the  tracks  of  such  leadership, 
soon  made  them  the  most  fashionable  of  his  desiderata.  Every 
man  who  had  any  pretension  to  culture  and  taste  posed  as  a  con¬ 
noisseur;  kings  and  queens  felt  themselves  lacking  in  their  duty 
to  archaeology  and  art  unless  they  formed  and  fostered  national 
cabinets.  Even  in  ancient  Rome  there  were  collectors.  Scaurus, 
the  stepson  of  Sulla,  is  the  first  of  whom  we  find  record.  Later, 
Mithridates,  the  great  king  of  Pontus,  had  a  collection  which  his 
conqueror,  Pompey,  seized  and  consecrated  in  the  Capitol. 
Julius  Caesar  made  no  fewer  than  six,  all  of  which  he  gave  to  the 
temple  of  Venus  Genetrix,  and  Marcellus,  the  son  of  Octavia, 
presented  one  to  the  temple  of  the  Palatine  Apollo.  With  the 
revival  of  taste  and  learning  that  followed  the  Middle  Ages,  the 
interest  in  engraved  gems  sprang  up  again.  It  found  favor  with 
the  humanist  popes  and  the  princes  of  the  house  of  Medici. 
Lorenzo  the  Magnificent  was  a  most  discriminating  collector 
not  only  of  the  antique  but  also  of  the  best  work  of  his  own  time 
for  which  end  he  sought  to  bring  the  best  artists  to  Florence.  The 
LAVR.  MED  inscribed  on  many  stones  indicate  that  they  once 
belonged  to  this  famous  amateur.  Michael  Angelo  went  into 
ecstasies  over  the  Minerva  head  obtained  by  Cellini  in  1524  from 
some  workmen  in  a  vineyard.  Urbane  Italian  despots  and  rude 
Hapsburg  emperors,  Charles  IX,  Henry  IV,  and  Louis  XIV  of 


vi 


PREFACE 


France  gave  their  enthusiastic  patronage;  Catherine  II  founded 
the  famous  Russian  collection;  Frederick  the  Great  supported 
and  enriched  the  cabinet  begun  by  the  “Great  Elector” ;  Joseph¬ 
ine  was  an  eager  if  not  very  intelligent  seeker;  but  perhaps  the 
best  evidence  of  the  universality  of  the  craze  is  that  even  poor, 
bucolic  George  III  felt  called  upon  to  join  the  ranks  of  an  army 
of  whose  aims  he  knew  little,  and  with  whose  enthusiasm  he 
could  have  but  the  most  perfunctory  sympathy.  The  words  of 
Goethe  when  he  writes  of  Hemsterhuis  and  his  collection  of 
gems,  owned  later  by  the  Princess  Galitzin,  are  full  of  weight : 
“With  a  peculiarly  acute  delicacy  of  feeling  this  estimable  man 
was  led  unweariedly  to  strive  after  the  intellectual  and  moral  as 
well  as  the  sensuous  and  sesthetical.  If  we  are  to  be  imbued 
with  the  former  we  ought  constantly  to  be  surrounded  by  the 
latter.  To  a  private  person,  whose  movements  are  confined 
within  a  narrow  sphere  and  who  even  when  travelling  finds  it 
difficult  to  dispense  with  an  habitual  enjoyment  of  art,  a  collec¬ 
tion  of  engraved  gems  is  a  great  boon.  He  is  everywhere  ac¬ 
companied  by  what  gives  him  the  greatest  enjoyment  and  is  a 
valuable  means  of  instruction  without  being  cumbersome,  and 
he  can  continually  enjoy  a  very  precious  possession.”  Speaking 
further  of  the  Galitzin  cabinet,  Goethe  says:  “It  could  not  be 
denied  that  imitations  of  larger  and  more  valuable  ancient 
works  of  art  which  would  otherwise  have  been  lost  to  us  forever 
were  preserved,  like  jewels,  in  this  narrow  compass.  .  .  The 
brawniest  Hercules,  crowned  with  ivy,  could  not  deny  his  colos¬ 
sal  origin.  .  .  I  could  not  conceal  the  fact  that  I  had  here  entered 
quite  a  new  field  which  interested  me  exceedingly  and  only  re¬ 
gretted  the  shortness  of  my  sojourn  which  would  deprive  me  of 
the  opportunity  of  examining  this  new  class  of  objects  more 
closely.” 

At  last  came  the  collapse.  It  followed  the  sale  of  the  Pon- 
iatowski  collection  in  London,  in  1839,  and  the  resultant  ex¬ 
posure.  What  had  happened  was  what  always  happens  when  a 
sane  taste  has  degenerated  into  a  mere  collecting  mania.  Eager¬ 
ness  and  lack  of  knowledge  on  the  part  of  wealthy  collectors, 
the  enormous  prices  paid,  had  called  into  activity  a  horde  of 


PKEFACE 


vii 


more  or  less  competent  forgers,  who  battened  on  the  ignorance 
and  liberality  of  their  dupes.  Clever  Italian  gem-cutters  began 
as  emulators — often  almost  worthy  ones — of  the  ancient  artists, 
and  ended  as  fraudulent  imitators :  but  it  needed  the  audacious 
absurdities  of  a  Prince  Poniatowski  to  open  the  eyes  of  the 
multitude.  These  had  long  accepted  blindly  any  and  everything 
in  reason  and  out,  but  when  three  thousand  gems  were  thrown 
suddenly  on  the  market,  all  showing  similar  motive  and 
workmanship,  all  foreign  in  form  to  those  used  by  the 
ancients,  and  done  in  a  spirit  the  farthest  from  classic  art,  yet 
each  bearing  the  signature  of  some  supposed  ancient  artist,  then 
even  the  blindest  saw.  Every  would-be  connoisseur  felt  the 
ground  sinking  beneath  his  feet;  even  many  discriminating 
students  knew  not  what  to  believe;  faith  in  the  genuineness  of 
all  gems  and  all  collections  was  shattered  as  by  a  blow,  and  the 
cameo  or  intaglio  that  in  1830  would  have  brought  £1,000,  in 
1850  could  hardly  be  given  away.  This  is,  I  think,  the  most 
spectacular  instance  of  the  changes  of  fashion  in  connoisseur- 
ship,  just  because,  having  a  much  sounder  foundation  than  most 
collecting  fashions,  the  taste  for  engraved  gems  lived  longer  and 
went  farther,  gave  freest  scope  for  abuses,  and,  naturally 
enough,  provoked  the  most  extreme  of  reactions. 

During  the  years  that  have  passed  between  then  and  now, 
knowledge  that  there  are  such  things  as  antique  intaglios  and 
knowledge  of  what  they  are,  well-nigh  died  in  the  public  mind. 
Only  the  student,  the  archaeologist,  and  the  lover  whose  faith 
nothing  could  shake,  remained,  and  to  these  fell,  and  still  falls, 
the  harvest  to  be  reaped  in  a  field  where  the  grain  is  rich  and 
the  reapers  are  few.  The  forgers  soon  dropped  their  now  un¬ 
profitable  craft  and  died;  no  new  ones  took  their  places;  the 
very  art  of  gem-cutting  was  left  to  a  workman  here  and  there 
whose  ability  was  practically  limited  to  producing  a  mediocre 
head  or  crude  figure,  a  monogram  or  a  coat  of  arms.  Our  own 
St.  Gaudens,  when  a  very  young  man,  engraved  a  few  gems,  but 
it  cannot  be  said  that  he  ever  attained  any  eminence  in  the  art. 

Meanwhile  the  ploughed  ground,  the  excavations,  and  the 
tombs  continued  to  yield  their  hidden  store,  and  the  knowledge 


) 


viii 


PREFACE 


of  the  student  advanced,  until  he  could  smile  at  the  efforts  that 
had  deceived  men  of  the  preceding  generation.  He  gathered 
and  still  gathers,  for  a  mere  song,  objects  than  which  none  is 
more  interesting  and  fascinating. 

In  these  days  we  seek  for  Chinese  porcelains,  for  Japanese 
prints,  for  Tanagra  figurines,  for  Sheffield  plate,  pewter,  copper, 
textiles,  sword-guards  and  old  furniture — an  endless  list,  and 
the  forger  forges  merrily  on,  his  skill  and  his  plenteousness 
governed,  as  ever,  by  the  number  of  possible  dupes  and  the  prices 
to  be  had  for  his  wares.  It  will  be  a  sad  day  for  the  admirer  of 
ancient  gems,  when,  in  the  rolling  world  of  fashion,  the  collect¬ 
ing  tide  sets  again  in  their  direction,  as  it  inevitably  will. 

Time  must  elapse,  however,  before  an  indiscriminate  de¬ 
mand  can  rear  a  new  generation  of  forgers  clever  enough  to 
meet  the  knowledge  and  experience  we  now  have.  The  hare  has 
slept  long  and  the  tortoise  has  won  a  lead  that  his  swift-footed 
rival  cannot  soon  overcome.  Meanwhile,  happy  is  he  whose 
interest  and  tastes,  formed  on  sane  lines  and  with  a  just  ap¬ 
preciation  of  relative  values,  are  not  subject  to  the  mandates  of 
fashion.  To  him,  be  he  rich  or  poor,  is  the  possibility  of  the 
most  satisfactory  and  best  attainment  of  his  heart’s  desire. 

It  is  for  such  that  this  book  is  written.  The  works  of 
Dr.  Charles  W.  King  are  out  of  print  and  rarely  attainable. 
Then,  too,  while  there  is  much  of  value  in  their  pages,  there 
are  also  many  errors  that  the  thirty  years  that  have  passed 
since  he  wrote  have  corrected;  a  mass  of  new  knowledge  that 
has  been  gained.  The  few  other  books  in  English  on  the 
subject  are  more  or  less  open  to  the  same  criticism,  are  limited 
in  scope,  or  are  worthless;  while  the  monumental  work  of  Dr. 
Adolf  Furtwangler,  published  at  two  hundred  and  sixty 
marks,  has  never  been  translated  from  the  German,  and,  in 
its  devotion  to  what  may  be  called  the  more  “important”  art 
side  of  the  subject,  it  ignores  almost  entirely  the  great  mass 
of  cruder  specimens  among  which  the  individual  gem-lover 
must  look  for  most  of  his  finds  and  for  his  illumination,  and 
which  I  believe  to  be  not  less  interesting,  from  many  stand¬ 
points,  than  the  best  productions  of  this  classic  art. 


PREFACE 


ix 


In  the  matter  of  ancient  proper  names  one  is  always 
beset  by  the  dilemma  whether  to  follow  the  ancient  nomen¬ 
clature  and  spelling  at  the  cost  of  seeming  pedantic  or  whether 
to  adopt  frankly  the  Latinized  modern.  In  a  work  like  this 
the  former  seems  imperative,  but  I  have  taken  the  liberty  of 
a  measure  of  eclecticism  in  a  few  such  cases  as  centaur  for 
kentauros,  cyclops  for  kuklopes  and  caduceus  for  kerukeion. 
I  have  also  taken  the  liberty  of  dropping  the  final  n  in  names 
like  Plouton,  Apollon  and  Platon.  The  long  marks  over  the 
e  and  o  denote,  as  usual,  the  Greek  eta  and  omega.  When, 
however,  I  come  to  consider  Roman  gems,  I  have  accepted  the 
Latinized  Greek  names.  Both  forms  will  thus  generally  be 
found,  each  in  the  connection  in  which  it  may  be  most  useful 
to  the  student  of  inscriptions.  In  the  cases  of  some  of  the 
most  familiar  geographical  names,  like  Bceotia,  for  instance, 
where  the  Greek  spelling  would  affect  the  pronunciation,  I  have 
let  the  ce  stand  for  the  Greek  oi — also  Cyprus  for  Kupros  etc. 

In  closing  my  preface  I  must  acknowledge  my  indebted¬ 
ness,  first,  to  the  works  of  Messrs.  Arthur  J.  Evans  and  D.  G. 
Hogarth,  whose  discoveries  in  Crete  have  opened  a  new  field 
and  carried  the  knowledge  of  European  gem-engraving  back 
many  centuries.  Whoever  would  write  today  must  rely  on 
their  investigations  in  the  province  of  Cretan  glyptics.  On 
Dr.  Furtwangler  I  shall  draw  largely  in  the  matter  of  stones, 
shapes  and  subjects  characteristic  of,  more  especially,  the 
earlier  periods.  His  equipment  and  his  opportunities  for 
examination  of  a  great  number  of  examples  make  the  results 
of  his  observations  in  these  lines  invaluable  to  one  who  would 
present  a  full  view  of  the  subject,  and  the  obligation  cannot  be 
too  frankly  or  too  broadly  admitted.  When  it  comes  to  the 
deductions  and  theoretical  conclusions  so  dear  to  the  German 
scientist,  I  must  take  the  liberty  of  a  frequent  softening  of  his 
generalizations  and  of  occasional  divergence.  Dr.  King’s 
Gnostics  and  Their  Remains  furnishes  me  with  many  of  the 
inscriptions  on  Gnostic  gems  which  I  shall  find  necessary  to 
quote,  and  his  Antique  Gems  and  Rings,  Handbook  of  Engraved 
Gems  and  Early  Christian  'Numismatics,  however  full  of 


X 


PREFACE 


errors,  have  all  been  valuable  sources  of  information.  On  the 
subject  of  Mediaeval  gems  I  have  taken  advantage  of  the  in¬ 
vestigations  of  M.  Lecoy  de  la  Marche  and  M.  Germain  Demay 
and,  to  a  less  degree,  of  the  work  on  seals  of  Mr.  W.  de  G.  Birch. 
I  wish  further  to  make  acknowledgment  to  Mr.  Harry  L. 
Pangborn  for  many  suggestions,  especially  in  the  field  of 
Mediaeval  glyptics,  as  well  as  for  invaluable  aid  in  other 
directions;  also  to  Mr.  Lacey  D.  Caskey  of  the  Boston  Museum 
of  Fine  Arts  for  his  painstaking  courtesy  in  connection  with 
the  gems  in  that  institution  which  I  have  used  for  illustration. 
To  the  Boston  Museum,  also,  and  to  the  Ashmolean  Museum  of 
Oxford  I  am  indebted  for  casts  of  gems  in  those  collections 
presented  to  me  for  photographing,  and  to  the  following  private 
collectors  for  the  loan  of  gems  to  make  casts  for  the  same 
purpose,  viz.,  Mr.  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  Prof.  George  N.  Olcott, 
Prof.  Herschel  Parker,  Mr.  Harry  L.  Pangborn,  Mrs.  Henry 
Draper,  Mr.  Thomas  E.  H.  Curtis  and  Mr,  Nestor  Sanborn. 


« 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 


Preface  . . v 

Introduction . 1 


Interest  in  Antiquity,  3;  Forgeries,  8;  Materials  of  Ancient  Gems, 
11;  Size  of  Ancient  Gems,  11;  Shapes  of  Ancient  Gems,  12;  Surface 
Appearance  of  Ancient  Gems,  12;  Workmanship  of  Ancient  Gems, 
14;  Designs  on  Ancient  Gems,  15;  Signatures  on  Ancient  Gems,  18; 
Inscriptions  on  Ancient  Gems,  19. 


PART  I 

HISTORY  OF  GEM  ENGRAVING— CHARACTERISTICS  AND 
DEVELOPMENTS  OF  EACH  PERIOD 

CHAPTER  I 

Early  Work.— Minoan  and  Mycenaean  Gems. — The  Greek  Middle  Ages. 

— Melian  or  Island  Stones. — From  3000  (?)  to  600  b.c.  ...  23 

Minoan  Gems,  23;  Mycenaean  Gems,  29;  Greek  Middle  Ages,  32; 

Melian  Stones,  34. 


CHAPTER  II 

Archaic  Greek  Gems . 36 

Greek  Scarabs  for  the  Etruscan  Market,  44;  Phoenician  and  Cartha¬ 
ginian  Scarabs,  45. 


CHAPTER  III 

The  Gems  of  the  Best  Period  (480-400  b.  c.  )  and  of  the  Period  of  the 

Finished  Styles  (400-300  b.c.) . 48 

Greek-Persian  Gems,  48;  Greek  Gems,  50. 


CHAPTER  IV 

Etruscan  Scarabs . 63 


CHAPTER  V 

Gems  of  the  Hellenistic  Period  .........  77 


xi 


CONTENTS 


xii 


CHAPTER  VI 

PAGE 

Middle  Italian  Gems  op  the  Roman  Republic . 84 

Under  Etruscan  Influence,  85;  Under  Hellenistic  Influence,  96; 

Period  of  Combining  Influences,  101. 

CHAPTER  VII 

Gileco-Roman  Gems  op  the  Early  Empire . 106 

CHAPTER  VIII 

Gems  op  the  Later  Empire.— Christian  Gems. — Mithraic  and  Gnostic 

Talismans . 125 

Christian  Subjects,  127;  Mithraic  Gems,  131;  Gnostic  Gems,  134. 

CHAPTER  IX 

Byzantine,  Sassanian  and  Moslem  Gems . 148 

Byzantine  Gems,  148;  Sassanian  Gems,  148;  Later  Mohammedan 
Gems,  153;  Rabbinical  Gems,  154. 

CHAPTER  X 

Gems  in  Mediaeval  Europe.— Their  Use  and  Manufacture  .  .  .  155 

CHAPTER  XI 

Gems  of  the  Renaissance . 170 

Gem  Engravers  of  the  Fifteenth  Century,  174  ;  Gem  Engravers  of 
the  Sixteenth  Century,  174  ;  Gem  Engravers  of  the  Seventeenth  Cen¬ 
tury,  178. 

CHAPTER  XII 

Gems  of  Modern  Times  . . 181 

Gem  Engravers  of  the  Eighteenth  Century,  183  ;  Gem  Engravers  of 
the  Nineteenth  Century,  189  ;  Gem  Engraving  To-day,  193. 


PART  IT 

THE  DEITIES  AND  OTHER  PERSONAGES  COMMON  OR 
LIABLE  TO  BE  FOUND  ON  ENGRAVED  GEMS,  WITH 
THEIR  APPEARANCE,  ATTRIBUTES,  ETC. 

CHAPTER  I 

The  Greater  Gods  and  Their  Associates  .......  199 


CONTENTS  xiii 

CHAPTER  II 

PAGE 

Lesser  and  Later  Deities  with  Their  Attributes . 230 

CHAPTER  III 

Heroes  and  Their  Attributes . 253 


PART  III 

TECHNIQUE— MATERIALS— HISTORICAL  AND 
MYTHOLOGICAL  SIGNETS 


CHAPTER  I 

Tools  and  Technical  Methods  op  Gem  Engraving  ....  271 

CHAPTER  II 

Stones  Used  for  Ancient  Intaglios . 277 

CHAPTER  III 

Historical  and  Mythological  Signets . 286 

Description  and  Explanation  of  Plates . 297 

Alphabetical  List  of  Attributes,  Aspects,  and  Sacred  or  Sacrificial 
Animals,  Trees,  and  Flowers . ,393 

Index . 399 


Plates 


At  end  of  book 


ENGRAVED  GEMS 


INTRODUCTION 

From  the  earliest  times  two  ideas  have  advanced  side 
by  side  in  the  desire  of  mankind  for  precious  and  semi-precious 
stones.  Most  of  these  are  beautiful  in  themselves.  Hence 
they  have  been  sought  as  ornaments.  Many  of  them,  from  their 
rarity,  their  unusual  colors,  and  their  hardness,  have  been 
looked  upon  as  amulets  that  can  avert  evil  or  talismans  that 
can  bring  good  fortune.  Later,  when  advancing  knowledge 
of  the  arts  enabled  the  workman  to  fashion  the  shapes  and  en¬ 
grave  the  surface  of  the  stones,  both  ideas  received  a  new 
impetus.  It  was  obvious  that  the  ornamental  element  could 
be  enhanced  by  the  skill  of  the  artist  and,  also,  that  the  subject 
engraved,  were  it  the  figure  or  attribute  of  some  god,  a  written 
charm  or  a  magic  symbol,  might  induce  or  enhance  the  luck- 
bringing  quality,  above  all  things  to  be  desired.  Later,  yet  a 
third  element  was  added. 

With  the  first  existence  of  the  institution  of  personal 
property  and  the  beginnings  of  business,  social  and  political 
relations,  arose  the  need  to  each  man  of  a  device  which,  by  its 
impression  on  clay  or  some  other  soft  and  hardening  substance, 
would  identify  his  possessions,  his  agreements  and  his  com¬ 
munications.  Here  again  the  engraved  surfaces  of  precious 
or  semi-precious  stones  offered  the  best  means  to  the  end. 
Their  hardness  made  them  durable  and  difficult  to  imitate, 
their  small  size  made  them  easy  to  carry,  and  the  possible  com¬ 
bination  of  ornament,  amulet  and  signet  was,  naturally,  con¬ 
venient  and  attractive. 

Probably  the  earliest  development  of  the  signet  idea  was 
among  the  Sumerians  of  Chaldsea  or  the  Egyptians  and  is 
dated  rather  speculatively  about  5000  B.  C.  The  form  adopted 
was  the  cylinder,  first  of  soft  and,  later,  of  hard  stone,  pierced 


2 


INTRODUCTION. 


through  its  length  so  that  it  could  be  suspended  by  a  cord  from 
wrist  or  neck.  It  would  seem  that  the  shape  may  have  had  its 
origin  in  an  earlier  use  of  bits  of  reed  the  peculiar  lines  of 
whose  surfaces  could  be  rolled  on  moist  clay  for  purposes  of 
identification  and,  like  the  serrated  margins  of  indenture 
deeds,  would  be  next  to  impossible  to  counterfeit.  Dr.  Stewart 
Culin  first  drew  attention  to  the  arrow  shaft,  with  its  owner’s 
mark,  as  a  most  plausible  source  of  the  idea,  a  suggestion 
which  other  writers  have  adopted,  generally  without  credit 
to  its  originator. 

The  use  of  the  cylinder  spread  over  western  Asia  and 
Egypt,  where  Menes,  the  first  king  of  the  upper  and  lower 
countries,  had  such  a  signet.  At  a  later  time  the  Asiatic 
favored  a  conical  seal,  also  pierced  and  suspended,  but  the 
study  of  these  forms,  together  with  the  mythology  and  writ¬ 
ings  pictured  on  them,  is  a  separate  branch  of  the  subject 
calling  for  the  Oriental  specialist,  and  the  work  of  Dr.  William 
Hayes  Ward  fills  the  field  most  satisfactorily. 

In  Egypt  a  national  form  developed.  The  shape  of  the 
Egyptian  beetle  or  scarab  began  to  prevail  from  the  beginning 
of  the  Twelfth  Dynasty  and  was  soon  universally  adopted 
from  religious  motives.  It  was  the  emblem  of  the  Sun,  the 
presiding  god;  it  was  the  emblem  of  eternity  and  of  strength, 
but  Egyptian  work  in  intaglio  was  pretty  much  confined  to 
hieroglyphics,  symbols  and  decorative  designs  and,  hence, 
never  rose  to  high  artistic  excellence.  Here  again  is  a  field 
for  the  specialist  in  the  language  and  archaeology,  and  the 
scarab  form  comes  into  our  province  only  in  so  far  as  its  use 
spread  into  the  Phoenician  colonies,  Greece,  and  Etruria, 
where  the  intaglio  took  upon  itself  the  character  and  quality 
of  Hellenic  art.  As  a  rule  we  have  to  do  with  stones  cut  to 
be  set  in  rings  of  gold,  silver,  bronze,  iron  and,  rarely,  even  lead. 

A  word  may  be  added  as  to  cameos,  a  later  development. 
In  most  works  on  the  subject  of  engraved  gems,  these  are 
treated  at  considerable  length ;  but  such  miniature  relief 
sculpture  had  no  further  purpose  than  ornamentation,  except 
so  far  as  this  included  portraiture,  and  they  lack  almost  entire- 


INTEREST  IN  ANTIQUITY 


3 


ly  the  peculiar  interest  that  the  intaglio  presents.  Incident¬ 
ally,  the  number  of  ancient  cameos  is  comparatively  small. 
Most  of  the  specimens  we  see  are  Renaissance  or  modern, 
since  the  forgers,  looking  for  ready  remuneration  and  to  the 
more  showy  manifestations  of  their  craft,  found  in  the 
cameo  a  much  more  profitable  field  for  their  efforts  and  one 
that  required  less  study,  knowledge  and  caution  than  did  the 
intaglio  with  its  intimate  associations  with  the  life  and 
thought  of  antiquity,  with  the  very  soul  of  the  classic  world. 

The  limits,  then,  of  this  work,  for  I  conceive  the  value  of 
such  a  treatise  is  largely  a  matter  of  limitations,  should  be 
set  by  the  phrase  “Classic  and  Modern  Intaglios.”  In  these 
we  shall  find  all  the  art,  all  the  mystical  elements,  and  all 
the  peculiar  personal  associations  which  the  use  of  signets 
involved. 

INTEREST  IN  ANTIQUITY 

The  interest  in  what  we  call  “antiquities”  may  be  broad¬ 
ly  classified  under  three  heads. 

First,  that  of  the  student:  the  scientific  archaeologist,  who 
looks  upon  such  objects  as  a  means  of  knowledge.  To  him 
the  study  of  Greek,  Roman  and  Etruscan  intaglios  affords 
many  sources  of  information.  In  the  subjects  pictured,  from, 
let  us  say  speculatively,  3000  B.  C.,  may  be  traced  accurately 
the  trend  of  thought  of  each  period  and  nation.  We  know  the 
things  that  interested  the  Greek  of  the  Mycenaean  Age  and  the 
Roman  of  the  Lower  Empire.  Perhaps  it  was  art  pure  and 
simple,  perhaps  religion,  as  voiced  in  sacerdotal  subjects  and 
the  figures  of  gods  and  their  attributes,  grading  down  to  the 
grosser  superstitions  evidenced  by  many  talismans  and 
amulets.  Poetic  taste  was  gratified  by  scenes  from  the 
Homeric  and  other  legends.  The  idea  of  personal  subservience 
and  flattery  shows  itself  in  the  many  instances  where  the 
subject  wore  his  monarch’s  portrait,  the  client  his  patron’s, 
while  simpler  and  more  material  preferences  produced  numer¬ 
ous  genre  pictures  of  everyday  life.  The  adherent  of  the  green 
or  the  blue  wore  his  favorite  horse  or  quadriga,  the  hunter 


4 


INTRODUCTION 


or  the  tradesman,  some  representation  of  his  play  or  work, 
and  so  through  every  human  motive  and  taste  that  fashion  or 
personality  has  born  and  nourished. 

It  is  in  this  connection  that  we  find  much  of  the  interest 
and  value  of  the  great  mass  of  the  poorer — even  of  the  con¬ 
temptible — work  from  an  art  standpoint:  the  gems  that  we 
commonly  run  across  and  which  Professor  Furtwangler  and 
other  writers  largely  ignore. 

Again,  in  the  work  itself  it  is  easy  to  follow  the  ebb  and 
flow  of  civilization  as  evidenced  by  the  merit  of  the  art  and 
the  skill  of  the  craftsman,  and  here,  too,  it  seems  to  me  a 
great  mistake  to  scorn  the  commonplace.  Each  gem  has  its 
lesson  to  teach,  whether  it  be  from  the  hand  of  Dexamenos  or 
from  that  of  some  wretched  bungler  in  the  Diocletian  Forum. 

In  connection  with  the  art  side  of  the  subject  there  is  also 
to  be  considered  the  fact  that  famous  statues  and  paintings 
were  often  reproduced  on  these  gems.  The  statue  is  mutilated 
or  destroyed,  the  painting  has  perished,  but  we  have  learned 
and  may  yet  learn  much  of  the  masterpieces  of  antiquity  from 
the  sard  or  the  plasma  whose  hardness  and  minute  dimensions 
have  saved  it  for  a  later  age. 

In  portraiture  alone  there  is  an  exhaustless  fund  of 
interest  and  of  archaeological  information.  The  faces  of  rulers 
and  great  men  look  from  gems  only  less  often  than  from  coins, 
while  the  obvious  advantage  of  bearing  one’s  own  likeness 
for  a  signet  has  left  us  a  multitude  of  portraits  of  humbler 
characters  with  always  the  hope  that  an  identification  here 
and  there  may  reveal  the  lineaments  of  some  man  in  whom 
history  has  created  a  deathless  interest. 

Finally  the  knowledge  of  costumes,  of  the  forms  of  weap¬ 
ons  and  articles  for  every  conceivable  use,  is  obviously  advanc¬ 
ed  by  this  study,  and  in  the  deciphering  of  the  inscriptions 
borne  by  many  gems  lies  an  unlimited  field  for  conjecture  and 
research.  The  signatures  alone  have  revealed  the  names  of 
many  artists  that  would  otherwise  have  been  lost. 

Turning  now  from  the  standpoint  of  the  student  to  that 
of  the  collector,  little  needs  to  be  said.  His  interest  is  obvious, 


INTEREST  IN  ANTIQUITY 


5 


and  to  scorn  or  ignore  him  is  unfair.  He  has  accomplished 
his  good  and  his  evil:  good  in  the  stimulation  to  research 
that,  without  his  eagerness  and  his  resources,  might  have 
been  long  delayed  or  never  attempted:  evil,  in  that  the  same 
eagerness  and  the  limitation  of  his  requirements  have  resulted 
in  much  superficial  and  often  destructive  work  whereby  op¬ 
portunities  for  illumination  have  been  obscured  or  lost.  The 
Hermes  of  Praxiteles  was  identified  positively  only  from  the 
fact  of  its  discovery  just  where  Pausanias  wrote  that  it  stood. 
Had  it  been  found  by  some  ignorant  excavator  and  smuggled 
out  of  the  country  for  private  gain,  we  would  have  had  a 
beautiful  example  of  ancient  art,  but  probably  the  world  would 
never  have  known  it  for  the  very  work  of  the  great  master. 

But  there  is  another  reason  why  mere  collecting,  even  on 
its  crudest  lines,  must  not  be  unqualifiedly  condemned.  It  is 
the  most  obvious  source  and  beginning  of  interest,  often  of 
real  knowledge.  That  alone  marks  it  for  a  commendable  taste 
whose  abuses  only  should  be  attacked  and  circumscribed.  You 
can  hardly  become  the  owner  of  a  single  gem  without  a  grow¬ 
ing  desire  to  know  something  of  the  story  it  has  to  tell,  and 
no  one  is  apt  to  become  a  collector  in  such  a  field  without 
having  somewhere  in  his  nature,  to  be  revealed  and  cultivated, 
a  taste  for  the  secrets  of  antiquity  and  a  curiosity  about  its 
message  for  to-day. 

This  brings  me  to  a  consideration  of  the  third  type  of 
antiquarian,  combining  in  varying  proportions  the  attributes 
of  both  student  and  collector.  For  want  of  a  better  term  let 
us  call  him  the  Romantic  Archaeologist.  It  is  to  such  that 
the  classic  intaglio  appeals  most  strongly,  if  only  because 
of  each  gem’s  close  personal  associations  with  some  individual 
who  lived  from,  say,  two  to  five  thousand  years  ago :  a  man 
of  one  of  those  races  that  have  shaped  our  own  life  and 
thought,  our  politics  and  our  ethics,  all  that  make  us  what 
we  are.  I  take  it  there  can  be  little  beyond  a  purely  scientific 
interest  in  what  we  may  call  the  independent  and  dead  civiliza¬ 
tions:  that  of  the  Incas,  and,  in  some  degree,  those  of  many 
Oriental  peoples,  but  Greece  and  Rome,  of  however  long  ago, 


6 


INTRODUCTION 


can  never  be  disassociated  from  ourselves,  must  live  always  in 
the  mind  of  every  one  to  whom  history  and  biography  mean 
anything.  Here  it  is  that  the  spirit  of  romance  appeals  most 
powerfully  and  in  direct  proportion  to  the  measure  in  which 
we  can  make  it  particular  and  real.  In  this  connection  each 
gem,  so  far  as  it  can  speak  and  be  understood,  has  its  story 
to  tell,  and  the  imagination  of  the  true  lover  of  romance  thrills 
at  the  touch  of  the  bit  of  sard  or  chalcedony  that  has  been  part 
of  scenes  that  history  has  made  immortal :  a  thing  that  some 
man  who  lived  then  has  had  fashioned  according  to  his  indi¬ 
vidual  needs  or  taste  or  whim;  and  when  one  can  come  even 
closer  than  this  and  spell  out  ancient  truths,  however  trivial, 
the  thrill  grades  upward  into  a  sensation  akin  to  awe. 

I  wonder  what  a  man’s  feeling  would  be  could  he  become 
the  owner  of  the  signet  of  Julius  Caesar — that  famous  stone 
engraved  with  a  Venus  Victrix,  his  patron  goddess?  Very 
probably  it  is  still  in  existence  somewhere,  perhaps  unrecog¬ 
nized  in  some  collection,  for  we  know  nothing  of  it  beyond 
the  device  and  the  certainty  that  it  was  a  work  of  the  best 
art.  Perhaps  tomorrow  the  plough  may  turn  it  up.  We  have 
the  signet  of  the  Emperor  Constantius  II,  cut  in  a  beautiful 
sapphire  and  showing  him  spearing  a  wild  boar.  A  recumbent 
female  figure  typifies  the  city  of  Caesarea,  near  which  the 
exploit  was  accomplished,  and  all  is  made  clear  by  the  inscrip¬ 
tion  the  stone  bears.  A  small  sard  intaglio  of  a  Victory,  en¬ 
graved  in  the  style  of  consular  art,  said  to  have  been  found  in 
the  sarcophagus  of  Lucius  Scipio  Barbatus,  Consul  298  B.  C., 
was,  if  the  record  be  straight,  undoubtedly  his  signet;  while 
King,  in  pp.  146-147  of  his  Handbook  of  Engraved  Gems, 
indulges  in  one  of  those  speculations  always  most  fascinating 
and  which  looks  toward  the  identification  of  a  sard,  engraved 
with  a  portrait  ( ? )  head  and  half  the  circumference  of  a 
shield  (PI.  XVIII,  25),  with  the  signet  of  the  great  Marcellus, 
used  after  his  death  by  Hannibal  upon  forged  letters  which 
he  sent  to  various  towns. 

In  Chapter  III  of  Part  III  of  this  work,  I  give  a  list  of 
the  devices  worn  by  those  historical  characters  of  whose  signets 


INTEREST  IN  ANTIQUITY 


7 


we  have  any  record,  but  even  the  far  slighter  and  much  less 
consequential  stories  of  two  gems  in  my  possession  may  be 
of  interest  here,  as  indicating  the  possibilities. 

The  first  is  a  mottled  jasper,  red  and  yellow,  somewhat 
chipped :  a  stone  favored  by  the  Greek  gem-cutters  of  the  fifth 
century  B.  C.  The  character  of  the  work,  though  rudely 
and  cheaply  done,  does  not  prohibit  dating  it  from  that  period, 
and  the  fact  that  the  gem  is  a  ring-stone,  without  border, 
indicates  the  end  of  the  century.  It  shows  a  male  figure  wear¬ 
ing  a  long  gown  and  pouring  some  liquid  on  the  ground  from 
a  conical  vessel  (PI.  VIII,  8).  At  once  our  thought  turns  to 
that  closing  ceremony  of  the  Eleusinian  Mysteries,  when  liba¬ 
tions  of  water  were  poured  toward  the  East  and  West  from 
top-shaped  vessels.  The  form  of  the  vessel,  the  sacerdotal 
character  of  the  dress,  and  the  peculiarity  of  the  design  all 
point  to  its  being  a  representation  of  this  act,  and  such  a 
device  would  be  taken  for  a  signet  only  by  an  initiate.  Now 
at  the  time  when  we  have  guessed  our  gem  to  have  been  cut 
and  worn  none  but  a  Greek  was  eligible  for  initiation,  and, 
doubtless,  Athens  furnished  the  great  majority  of  neophytes. 
Add  to  this  that  the  stone  was  procured  at  Taormina,  was 
probably  found  in  the  neighborhood,  and  that  the  famous 
Athenian  expedition  against  Syracuse  wintered,  415-416  B.  C. 
at  Naxos,  the  site  of  which  lies  just  below,  and  there  seems 
fair  reason,  at  least,  to  fancy  that  this  very  gem  was  the  signet 
of  a  soldier  of  that  ill-fated  army;  not  a  leader  or  a  man  of 
wealth,  but  a  well-to-do  citizen  of  the  greatest  city  the  in¬ 
tellectual  world  has  ever  known,  who  had  come  to  lay  down 
his  life  for  her  empire  in  a  field  where  misguided  ambition  led 
her  to  her  defeat  and  to  the  beginning  of  her  decadence.  One 
does  not  often  find  an  object  with  more  dramatic  associations 
than  this. 

The  second  gem  is  a  rather  crude  figure  of  a  horse  bearing 
a  palm  branch  (PI.  XXVII,  13).  The  workmanship  shows  it  to 
be  of  the  Roman  period,  when  the  interest  in  the  games  of  the 
circus  had  become  a  popular  passion.  Evidently  the  owner  of 
this  signet  had  taken  his  favorite  racer  for  a  device,  the  palm 


8 


INTRODUCTION 


branch  indicating  some  victory — some  “big-killing”,  as  our 
racing  men  of  today  might  phrase  it.  In  the  field  are  the 
three  Greek  letters,  ATP,  reversed  so  as  to  be  read  in  an 
impression.  Possibly  this  is  an  abbreviation  of  the  owner’s 
name,  but,  in  view  of  the  subject  and  motive,  it  would  be  more 
likely  to  be  that  of  the  horse,  and  the  chance  of  deciphering  it 
naturally  appealed  to  me.  If  I  found  an  appropriate  name,  I 
reasoned,  the  probability  would  be  much  strengthened.  Now 
in  Greek  there  are  not  many  words  that  begin  with  ATP. 
Outside  of  a  few  proper  names,  none  of  which  seemed  very  apt, 
the  problem  resolved  itself  into  two  more  striking  alternatives. 
Arpiauro?,  “the  Unconquered”,  struck  me  as  being  one  that 
in  its  very  ultimateness  might  expose  an  owner  to  the  con¬ 
stant  chance  of  a  rather  ridiculous  anti-climax.  Ar  pvroDvp , 
“the  Tireless”  or  “the  Unwearied”,  an  epithet  of  Athena,  was 
in  every  way  appropriate,  and  I  believe  it  to  be  the  correct 
solution,  one  that  seems  to  me  to  add  a  definite  bit  of  romantic 
glamor  to  an  otherwise  ordinary  gem. 

FORGERIES 

I  now  approach  a  topic  most  closely  interwoven  with  the 
study  and  collecting  of  gems,  as  it  is  with  every  other  branch 
of  archaeology  and  connoisseurship.  Between  the  student,  the 
connoisseur,  and  the  collector  on  the  one  hand,  and  their  arch 
enemy  the  forger  on  the  other,  the  contest  is  bitter  and,  seem¬ 
ingly,  unending. 

I  have  suggested  above  why  the  danger  is  less,  at  the 
present  time,  in  the  case  of  engraved  gems  than  in  other  and 
more  fashionable  fields,  but  we  cannot  deny  that  it  is  a  real 
danger  to  most  of  those  for  whom  this  book  is  written :  people 
whose  interest  in  the  subject  may  be  inchoate  and  whose 
knowledge  is,  as  yet,  slender.  These  have  a  right  to  look  for 
some  suggestions  that  may  guide  and  fortify  them,  as  far  as 
possible,  against  perils  that  strike  at  the  very  roots  of  the 
interest  we  have  and  the  pleasure  we  find  in  such  pursuits. 

Let  me  begin  with  the  indisputable  statement  that  it  is 


FORGERIES 


9 


always  possible,  granting  the  highest  measure  of  knowledge 
on  a  subject,  the  greatest  technical  skill,  and  the  utmost  care, 
for  a  forger  to  produce  work  in  any  line  that  will  deceive  the 
most  erudite  and  experienced  critic.  Then  let  me  add  that 
practically  he  never  quite  succeeds  in  doing  it.  Somewhere  or 
other  he  slips,  and,  sooner  or  later,  detection  follows. 

Now  if  you  ask  for  a  hard  and  fast  test  or  rule  that  can 
be  applied,  such  as  certain  writers  have  been  prompt  to  give, 
I  can  only  answer  that  the  very  existence  of  such  a  test  or  rule 
would  negative  my  statement,  because  the  forger  would  need 
only  to  learn  it  and  meet  its  requirements.  It  is  in  study  and 
knowledge  of  the  subject — of  the  many  minute  elements  that 
argue  for  genuineness — that  our  safety  lies,  and  in  the  re¬ 
sultant  instinct — a  sort  of  collector’s  sixth  sense — that  is 
finally  acquired  from  the  handling  and  analysis  of  the  objects 
themselves. 

For  the  reason  that  a  rational  classification,  however 
arbitrary,  is  apt  to  help  in  the  discussion  of  such  matters,  if 
only  by  formulating  our  ideas,  let  me  divide  intaglios  into  five 
classes  from  the  standpoint  of  their  genuineness. 

First:  those  unquestionably  ancient. 

Second:  those  ancient  in  all  reasonable  probability. 

Third :  those  whose  antiquity  is  a  matter  of  more  or 
less  balancing  doubts. 

Fourth:  those  that  are  probably  forgeries. 

Fifth:  those  that  are  certainly  modern  work. 

For  the  beginner  all  gems  are  in  the  third  class,  whence, 
aided  by  the  opinions  of  students  and  experts  and  by  his  own 
growing  knowledge,  he  will  find  them  gravitating  toward  either 
end  of  the  list.  It  is  only  honest  to  say,  however,  that,  even 
for  the  wisest  and  most  erudite,  there  remain  a  few  that  he 
cannot  honestly  take  from  class  three,  and  these  are,  naturally, 
the  least  desirable  of  all.  Classes  four  and  five  are  always 
interesting  for  purposes  of  study  and  comparison,  but  the 
best  advice  is  to  try  to  confine  your  purchases  to  classes  one 
and  two.  You  will  make  enough  mistakes  to  fill  classes  three, 
four  and  five  quite  satisfactorily,  and  the  experience  you  pay 


10 


INTRODUCTION 


for  is  the  best  foundation  for  ultimate  knowledge.  I  would 
advise  the  beginner  never  to  give  much  over  five  dollars — 
better  one  or  two — for  a  gem.  Be  thankful  for  the  lack  of 
demand  that  enables  you  to  get  them  now  for  such  prices,  and 
consider  that  it  is  upon  finer  gems,  those  for  which  the  forger 
hopes  to  get  a  good  price,  that  he  can  afford  to  expend  his 
best  knowledge  and  his  most  deceptive  arts. 

In  taking  advice  always  bear  in  mind  the  limitations  of 
the  dealer.  I  doubt  if  any  trade  is  more  demoralizing  than 
that  in  antiquities,  and,  however  honest  the  man,  there  is 
always  the  temptation  to  believe  what  he  wants  to  believe — 
what  it  is  to  his  financial  interest  to  believe — especially  when 
it  is  a  mere  matter  of  an  opinion  or  a  not  very  perilous 
guarantee.  Then,  too,  in  view  of  the  small  number  of  gems 
that  come  into  his  hands,  the  few  sales  and  the  trivial  prices, 
I  doubt  if  any  dealer,  certainly  none  in  America,  is  an  expert. 
His  honest  opinion  is  practically  valueless  except  in  the  most 
obvious  cases.  A  point  worth  considering,  however,  is  that, 
unless  he  be  consciously  and  deliberately  dishonest,  we  can 
often  learn  something  from  the  locality  from  which  a  gem  has 
come,  and  the  fact  that  the  sources  of  supply  of  certain  dealers 
are  largely  local  sometimes  helps  toward  diagnosis.  A  case 
in  point  is  a  little  head  of  Athena,  once  in  my  possession,  that, 
at  first  glance,  made  me  strongly  suspicious  that  it  was 
eighteenth  century  work.  The  seller,  a  dealer,  stated  that  he 
had  got  it  at  Aintab,  the  ancient  Antiochia-ad-Taurum,  in 
Asia  Minor.  I  believed  the  man  to  be  honest,  but,  in  any 
event,  if  he  had  been  going  to  lie  as  to  the  place  of  discovery, 
the  chances  are  immeasurable  that  he  would  have  chosen  some 
point  that  was  more  generally  known:  a  name  that  would 
have  meant  something  to  a  buyer  instead  of  one  that  few 
Americans  are  familiar  with.  In  fact,  I  had  observed  that 
“Antioch”  and  “Tyre”  were  the  sources  of  most  of  his  gems 
and  I  suspected  them  to  be  his  stock  provenances  when  he 
didn’t  know.  Granting,  then,  the  truth  of  his  statement,  as 
I  think  it  may  be  granted,  the  probability  of  a  modern  for¬ 
gery  ever  finding  its  way  to  Aintab  is  so  slender  that  it  may 


FORGERIES 


11 


be  practically  ignored.  I  can  add  that  a  closer  and  more 
careful  study  of  the  stone  went  far  to  negative  the  suspicion 
to  which  the  first  glance  gave  rise. 

And  now  let  us  consider  a  few  of  the  general  principles, 
which  have  a  bearing  in  passing  on  the  question  of  the 
antiquity  of  engraved  gems. 

Material. — In  the  first  place,  remember  that  the  harder 
and  more  precious  stones  were  not  used  by  ancient  engravers : 
the  diamond  and  the  ruby  perhaps  never;  the  sapphire  and 
emerald  very  rarely.  As  to  the  stones  that  were  used,  these 
chapters  will  indicate  more  fully,  period  by  period. 

Size. — In  the  second  place,  size  is  to  be  taken  seriously 
into  account,  and  here  we  must  bear  in  mind  that,  with  the 
exception  of  the  earlier  forms,  scarabs,  scaraboids  etc.  which 
were  pierced,  often  for  swivel  rings  and  generally  for  suspen¬ 
sion  from  wrrist  or  neck,  the  stones  were  made  for  ring  signets 
and  could  not  be  too  large  for  that  purpose.  It  should  be 
noted,  too,  that  many  of  the  late  Gnostic  talismans  and  amulets 
were  large  and  evidently  not  intended  to  be  worn  in  rings.  Very 
few  ancient  intaglios  were  used  as  ornaments.  The  exact 
opposite  is  true  of  the  cameos,  generally  made  for  the  orna¬ 
mentation  of  clothes,  armor  or  utensils;  but  the  forgers  down 
to  the  time  of  the  Poniatowski  sale  do  not  seem  to  have  real¬ 
ized  either  of  these  facts.  To  them  a  large  surface  offered 
better  opportunities  for  groups  of  figures  and  they  saw  no 
reason  against  its  use  in  the  case  of  the  intaglio.  Tims  most 
of  the  Poniatowski  gems  betray  their  falsity  by  their  large  size 
alone. 

Conversely  the  ancient  signet  stones  were  apt  to  be  rel¬ 
atively  thicker  than  the  modern  imitations.  The  old  rings 
were  heavy  and  the  gem-cutters,  working  by  hand  alone,  had 
no  occasion  to  cut  the  stones  into  the  very  thin  slices  made 
easy  by  our  modern  mechanical  devices.  This  rule  of  course 
is  much  less  universal  than  the  one  calling  for  a  circumference 
not  too  large  for  a  ring  setting,  and  many  thin  stones,  some 
of  them  cut  down  in  modern  times,  are  undoubtedly  genuine. 
Still,  the  principle  is  worth  remembering  and  applying. 


12 


INTRODUCTION 


Shape. — The  ancients  may  be  said  to  have  abhorred 
angles,  and  most  of  their  stones  are  oval  or  circular.  Some 
few  incline  toward  the  square  but  these  are  not  common  and 
the  angles  are  rarely,  if  ever,  sharp.  Octagonal  shapes  seem 
to  occur  only  in  gems  that  have  been  re-cut  in  mediaeval  or 
modern  times,  sometimes,  probably,  on  the  theory  of  the 
octagon’s  mystic  significance  as  representing  the  ogdoad  of 
Pythagoras,  or  on  account  of  its  Masonic  vogue.  The  face  of 
the  stone  was  very  often  cut  convex,  and,  especially  in  the 
cases  of  transparent  and  translucent  stones,  both  sides,  because 
the  depth  thus  gained  helped  the  cutting  and  added  to  the 
beauty  of  the  intaglio.  A  few  garnets  with  convex  face  and 
concave  back  are  probably  due  to  desired  light  effects.  A 
convex  back  that  meets  a  flat  face  is  anathema  among  an¬ 
cient  stones.  Also  it  must  be  remembered  that  slight  ir¬ 
regularity  of  outline  or  back  is  a  very  favorable  sign.  Stones 
cut  by  hand  often  show  this.  Lathe-shaped  stones  are  absolute¬ 
ly  regular,  and  only  a  painstaking  forger  or  one  working 
on  a  sufficiently  important  piece  to  render  it  worth  his  while 
to  take  pains,  bothers  to  do  much  hand  shaping.  Ignorant 
buyers  and  rich  tourists  do  not  demand  it  and  why  should  he 
undertake  unnecessary  labor?  Sometimes  on  the  back  of 
ancient  gems,  especially  sards,  are  found  two  slight  depres¬ 
sions  or  some  remains  of  them.  Their  purpose  is  doubtful : 
perhaps  to  help  fix  the  gem  for  engraving  or  in  the  ring.  This 
peculiarity  has  never,  to  my  knowledge,  been  imitated. 

Surface  Appearance. — Naturally  most  ancient  stones 
show  some  surface  indications  of  their  antiquity,  depending  of 
course  on  the  wear  and  tear  of  use  and  on  the  exposure  and 
vicissitudes  of  centuries.  There  is  a  dullness,  occasional 
scratches  and  often  a  minute  disintegration  of  the  stone  which 
the  glass  shows — an  even  wear  on  all  equally  exposed  surfaces, 
which  is  distinctly  different  from  the  elaborate  scratching  of 
the  forger,  the  action  of  powerful  acids  or  the  appearance 
presented  by  stones  that  have  been  crammed  down  a  turkey’s 
throat  and  subjected  to  the  action  of  its  gizzard — a  not  un¬ 
common  trick.  Obviously  gems  found  in  some  tomb  where 


FORGERIES 


13 


they  have  been  protected  from  the  elements  etc.  may  show 
little  or  no  signs  of  the  action  of  time,  but  the  rule  generally 
holds  fairly  well. 

In  this  connection,  however,  must  be  considered  the 
frequent  practice  of  repolishing  ancient  gems,  if  only  to  clear 
from  the  surface  the  paste  with  which  it  was  fastened  into  the 
ring  bezel  or  the  adhering  particles  of  disintegrating  metal. 
Naturally  the  backs  of  gems  are  apt  to  need  and  to  show  this 
more  than  the  faces,  for  unless  the  finder  or  later  owner  be 
very  ignorant,  he  will  let  the  face  alone,  since  a  repolished 
face  is  not  to  be  desired  from  an  archaeological  standpoint. 
Usually  too,  the  modern  repolishing,  done  for  the  most  part  by 
mechanical  means,  is  not  forced  deep  enough  to  obliterate 
entirely  the  parallel  lines  of  the  old  hand-polish — the  “hog¬ 
back  polish”,  so  called — which  came  from  rubbing  the  stone 
back  and  forth  on  a  polishing  surface.  Modern  repolishing  is 
sometimes  indicated  by  slight  friations  at  the  edges  of 
scratches,  a  fact  which  shows  that,  in  fighting  the  forger,  we 
must  try  to  put  ourselves  in  his  place,  just  as  a  good  general 
often  pierces  an  enemy’s  plans  by  imagining  himself  the  oppos¬ 
ing  commander  and  reasoning  out  what  he  will  do.  So  the 
forger  in  trying  to  indicate  on  his  own  fabrication  the  orderly 
events  in  the  history  of  the  gem  will  first  polish,  as  did  the 
maker,  and  then  mar  to  show  the  wear  of  use  and  time.  None 
but  an  honest,  if  misguided,  repolisher  who  seeks,  from  his 
standpoint,  to  beautify  his  gem  would  try  to  obscure  the  marks 
of  antiquity.  The  sequence  of  elaborate  polish  after  scratch¬ 
ing  is  a  pretty  sure  indication  of  genuineness  that  none  but 
a  very  analytical  and  subtle  fabricator  would  reason  out. 

As  to  the  polish  of  the  intaglio  itself,  in  the  days  when 
gem-collecting  was  a  fashion  this  was  held  to  be  the  surest 
test  of  the  real  antique,  but  most  of  the  rules  then  in  vogue 
have  been  pretty  well  exploded  in  tne  light  of  later  knowledge. 
We  know  now  that  the  ideas  of  the  classic  artists  as  to  the 
polish  to  be  given  to  the  interior  of  the  cutting  were  different 
at  different  times  and  in,  different  places.  Sometimes  a  high 
polish  was  given,  sometimes  little  or  none  and,  again,  the 


14 


INTRODUCTION 


cutter  essayed  to  polish  only  the  larger  interior  surfaces.  This 
much,  however,  may  be  ventured,  that  something  must  always 
be  allowed  to  time,  and  a  fine  gem  showing  brilliant  polish 
throughout  the  interior  of  the  design  must  be  always  regarded 
with  much  more  suspicion  than  one  that  shows  no  sign  of  ever 
having  had  any.  However  high  the  polish  may  have  been  at 
first,  two  thousand  years  or  thereabouts  is  bound  to  bring  a 
greater  or  less  degree  of  dullness — in  the  words  of  Dr.  King, 
“Like  that  produced  by  breathing  upon  the  originally  high 
lustre.”  This  appearance,  he  stated,  it  is  impossible  to  imitate. 
Difficult  to  imitate  would  probably  be  better,  for  I  doubt  if 
any  one  detail  cannot  be  imitated.  At  all  events,  the  application 
of  such  a  rule  doubtless  requires  much  more  experience  than 
most  collectors  gain.  Dating  the  work  after  300  B.  C.,  lack  of  any 
interior  polish  is  not  a  good  sign.  Among  the  late  jaspers  and 
crude  Gnostic  gems  there  is  often  little  or  none,  but  the 
Grceco-Roman  gem-cutter — even  the  poor  one — seems  to  have 
exceeded  our  forgers  in  diligence,  since  one  of  these  latter 
informed  me  regretfully  that  to  polish  the  interior  of  an 
intaglio  meant  more  labor  than  to  cut  it.  Naturally  it  did  not 
pay  him  to  spend  this  labor  on  a  cheap  stone. 

The  probably  not  very  frequent  use  of  ancient  stones  for 
modern  work  should  also  be  mentioned  in  this  connection,  as 
well  as  the  occasional  embellishment  and  re-cutting  of  ancient 
designs. 

Workmanship. — From  this  I  am  convinced  little  or 
nothing  is  to  be  learned  that  will  be  of  use  to  the  average 
collector  in  identifying  really  clever  imitations,  except  where 
the  style  of  the  work  is  incongruous  with  the  material  or  the 
subject.  The  indications  to  be  drawn  from  the  use  of  the 
diamond  point,  enforced  by  many  experts,  are  practically 
valueless.  Assuming  that  you  ever  learn  to  distinguish  the 
fine  lines  made  by  this  instrument  from  those  cut  by  delicate 
wheel-work — a  matter  upon  which  Furtwangler’s  speculations 
should  make  us  diffident — there  is  always  the  question  as  to 
how  generally  the  ancients  used  the  “splinter  of  adamant” 
(probably  not  at  all  much  before  Pliny’s  time),  and  there  is 


FORGERIES 


15 


the  certainty  that  some  moderns,  at  least,  have  used  it.  How¬ 
ever  the  details  of  the  appliances  and  tools  used  by  ancients 
and  moderns  may  have  varied,  the  methods  and  means  were 
too  closely  akin  to  show  differences  in  the  work  that  are  con¬ 
sistent  enough  to  have  much  value.  Certainly  none  but  a 
past  expert  can  apply  rules  drawn  from  such  differences  to 
decide  between  a  true  antique  and  a  clever  attempt  to  imitate 
one. 

It  may  be  well,  however,  to  mention  King’s  dictum  that 
flatness  of  a  design,  the  whole  of  which  is  sunken  more  or  less 
into  the  stone,  is  a  not  uncommon  feature  of  archaic  Greek 
gem-cutting,  and  an  excellent  criterion  of  antique  origin. 

Design. — I  now  come  to  the  province  in  which  the  forger 
is  most  likely  to  fail :  the  subject  of  the  design,  its  method  of 
presentation,  and  treatment.  To  be  sure,  he  may  copy  literally 
an  ancient  gem,  paste  or  coin  and  he  may  put  it  on  the  right 
stone  of  the  right  shape,  but  conceit,  ignorance  and  careless¬ 
ness  all  combine  to  lead  him  into  some  error  that  means  detec¬ 
tion.  Besides,  as  a  Roman  gem-cutter  has  informed  me,  it 
is  more  difficult  to  copy  literally  than  to  work  with  a  free 
hand,  and  experimenting  in  the  line  of  having  copies  made 
has  shown  me  not  only  that  they  charge  more  for  such  work, 
but  also  their  practical  inability  today  to  accomplish  it  in 
the  matter  of  detail.  It  is  here  that  some  knowledge  of  ancient 
art  in  general  is  necessary  as  well  as  of  the  subjects  favored 
in  each  epoch  and  in  each  place,  the  way  in  which  they  were 
presented  and  treated,  and  the  stones  used.  Thus  equipped — 
and  to  so  equip  one’s  self  is  but  pleasant  study  in  lines  of 
pretty  general  culture — you  can  go  down  into  the  market¬ 
place  and  bid  a  modest  defiance  to  the  foe.  You  know  beyond 
reasonable  doubt  that  the  most  perfect  imitation  of  archaic 
Greek  work  cut  on  a  blood-stone  Gr  a  yellow  jasper  is  a  for¬ 
gery  because  you  know  the  blood-stone  and  yellow  jasper 
were  late  materials  in  the  glyptic  art.  You  know,  beyond 
reasonable  doubt,  that  a  Gnostic  talismanic  design  cut  on  a 
chalcedony  scaraboid  or  a  scarab  is  false  because  you  know 
that  the  scarab  and  scaraboid  forms  were  not  used  when  the 


16 


INTRODUCTION 


Gnostic  philosophy  flourished ;  and  you  know  that  an  Etruscan 
inscription  on  a  scarab  carelessly  cut  and  with  an  unorna¬ 
mented  base,  indicates  that  it  is  neither  Etruscan  nor  Greek 
because  the  Etruscan  always  gave  his  greatest  care  to  the 
elaborate  cutting  and  ornamentation  of  the  beetle.  The  Greeks 
cut  their  scarabs  carelessly  and  they  lack  the  base  ornamenta¬ 
tion.  Such  and  many  other  incongruities  serve  but  to  suggest 
the  endless  pitfalls  that  yawn  for  the  forger:  his  need  to 
know  enough  to  combine  everything  and  combine  it  right,  and 
it  is  a  knowledge  on  such  matters  to  which  I  trust  a  perusal 
of  this  work  will  help  those  who  may  feel  an  interest  in  the 
subject. 

A  few  general  principles  that  govern  the  ancient  designs 
may,  perhaps,  fall  naturally  into  this  introduction,  leaving  the 
more  specific  characteristics  of  periods,  schools,  and  fashions, 
for  the  following  chapters. 

In  the  first  place,  the  subjects,  while  numerous,  were 
distinctly  limited.  These  will  be  best  treated  in  the  chapters 
under  their  epochs,  while  for  the  identification  of  the  different 
deities  and  personages,  which  constitute  a  large  proportion  of 
the  designs,  I  shall  give  in  Part  II  a  list  of  deities  and  heroes, 
the  aspect  under  which  they  were  represented,  and  the  at¬ 
tributes  one  or  more  of  which  may  accompany  them.  Certain 
gods  and  personifications  such  as  Jupiter,  Hermes,  Venus  Vic- 
trix,  Victory  and  Fortuna  are  found  very  commonly,  and  many 
types  vary  so  slightly  in  pose  and  attributes  as  to  suggest 
famous  statues  as  the  basis  of  a  conventionalized  method  of 
presentation  on  the  gems.  Historical  scenes,  as  opposed  to 
the  mythological  and  those  drawn  from  the  epic  cycles,  are 
so  rare  as  to  arouse  always  the  strongest  suspicion. 

By  far  the  greatest  number  of  ancient  signets  bore  but  a 
single  figure;  two  and  three  appear  much  more  rarely,  and 
where  many  are  shown  it  is  nearly  always  late  Roman  work 
or,  more  frequently,  modern.  The  chances  of  genuineness  de¬ 
crease  in  the  ratio  of  the  number  of  figures  on  a  gem,  except 
in  the  cases  of  certain  subjects  which  will  be  treated  under 
their  proper  epochs. 


FORGERIES 


17 


As  for  the  composition,  which  down  to  the  best  Hellenic 
period  was  so  drawn  as  to  fill  the  entire  field  of  the  stone, 
remember,  above  all  things,  that  the  leading  characteristics  of 
ancient  art  were  simplicity  and  restraint.  Except  on  early 
Greek  and  on  Etruscan  gems  you  will  find  few  forced  attitudes 
or  violent  motions.  Repose,  soberness,  statuesque  pose,  and 
lack  of  what  may  be  called  dramatic  invention  mark  the  best 
Greek  styles  and  their  successor  the  Graeco-Roman.  Whatever 
they  represented  was  shown  literally  and  with  simple  dignity. 
Nothing  fanciful  was  allowed  to  intrude,  for  a  large  proportion 
of  the  subjects  embodied,  whether  religious  or  from  the  epic 
cycles,  were,  in  a  sense,  scriptural  to  both  makers  and  wearers. 
When  we  compare  the  classic  work  with  the  dramatic  poses,  the 
pronounced  action,  and  the  figurative  embellishments  of  the 
Renaissance  and  with  later  attempts  to  imitate  ancient  art  in 
representations  of  ancient  subjects,  the  difference  is  most  strik¬ 
ing;  and,  again,  the  Poniatowski  gems  marked  its  extreme  (PL 
XXXII,  20).  With  the  fewest  exceptions  it  has  seemed  almost 
impossible  for  modern  workmen  to  understand  this  and  to  re¬ 
strain  their  eagerness  to  present  what  they  consider  a  good 
picture.  Once  grounded  on  a  little  comparative  examination, 
you  will  find  your  sense  developing  with  more  or  less  rapidity 
until  you  will  -feel ,  at  first  glance,  the  falsity  of  many  pretended 
antiques. 

In  one  field,  however,  the  would-be  imitators  have  been 
unable  to  follow  out  their  self-convicting  tendencies.  To  be 
sure,  they  cannot  very  well  do  so  in  the  case  of  attributes  and 
symbols  alone,  but  these  have  never  been  popular  with  them  or 
their  customers.  They  were  common  among  the  ancients  be¬ 
cause  of  their  luck-bringing  powers,  but  their  attraction  for 
modern  buyers,  other  than  students,  is  far  less  than  that  of 
figures  and  heads.  Heads,  then,  portrait  or  otherwise,  are  the 
subjects  where  the  most  marked  difference  between  ancient  and 
modern  work  fails  us  as  a  guide,  and,  by  a  natural  evolution, 
heads  have  proved  the  most  popular  and  the  most  dangerous 
fabrications  through  all  the  age  of  forgery.  The  number  of 
portraits,  for  which  the  imperial  coinage  furnished  the  best  of 


18 


INTRODUCTION 


models,,  are  many  and,  together  with  those  of  deities  and  the 
purely  ideal  heads,  they  flooded  the  market  of  the  eighteenth 
and  early  nineteenth  centuries  to  such  an  extent  that  I  would 
advise  him  whose  interest  and  knowledge  are  in  the  early  stage 
to  buy  few  if  any.  Later  he  will  come  to  know  one,  here  and 
there,  as  a  true  product  of  ancient  art.  Until  then,  if  he  buys 
at  all,  let  him  frankly  admit  that  he  buys  for  experience. 

It  may  also  be  suggested  that  the  average  forger  was  in¬ 
fluenced  in  his  choice  of  subjects  by  his  conception  of  what 
would  be  readily  understood  by  and  pleasing  to  his  patrons. 
Therefore,  besides  portraits  and  other  heads,  we  find  these  gen¬ 
try  favoring  subjects  from  the  Erotic  cycle;  Cupid,  under  his 
later  form  of  a  mischievous  child  with  wings  and  engaged  in 
various  and  often  fantastic  occupations,  Venus  in  her  nude  or 
semi-nude  aspects  and  many  of  the  more  grossly  Erotic  repre¬ 
sentations.  These  examples  will  serve  to  exemplify  my  point. 
On  the  other  hand,  few  forgers  have  attempted  or  will  attempt 
sacerdotal  subjects  or  anything  that  does  not  carry  a  clear 
meaning  to  the  greatest  number  of  possible  buyers.  The  general 
public  is  and  must  always  be  their  natural  prey.  The  real 
students  are  fewer,  generally  poorer,  and  more  difficult  to  de¬ 
ceive,  and  the  subjects  that  appeal  most  to  these  are  the  ones 
where  the  pitfalls  gape  everywhere  for  the  fabricator.  The  more 
clever  he  be  the  more  surely  will  he  follow  the  line  of  least  re¬ 
sistance  toward  the  field  of  his  richest  harvest. 

Signatures.— In  the  matter  of  artists’  signatures  we  find 
a  remarkable  example  of  an  upset  in  the  forger’s  craft.  During 
the  most  flourishing  period  of  his  cycle,  the  presence  of  the 
name  of  some  supposed  artist  of  antiquity  on  a  gem  was  sup¬ 
posed  to  add  both  to  its  claim  for  genuineness  and  to  its  value. 
Now  we  know  that  this  is  one  of  the  best  evidences  of  fraud. 
There  are  signed  gems,  but  they  are  very  rare,  and  the  artist’s 
name  is  sometimes  followed  by  the  word,  ejioiei,  is  apt  to  be  un¬ 
obtrusive,  and  is  found  only  on  the  larger  intaglios  or  on  work 
of  a  high  class.  Ordinarily  inscriptions  on  stones,  except  where 
they  are  mottoes  or,  as  in  the  case  of  Etruscan  scarabs,  where 
they  describe  the  subject,  indicate  the  owner’s  name,  usually 


FOKGERIES 


19 


abbreviated  or  often  in  the  genitive  case.  It  seems  strange 
that  it  was  not  realized  a  hundred  years  ago  that  another  man’s 
name  was  the  last  thing  an  owner  would  want  on  his  signet.  It 
is  to  be  accounted  for  in  the  comparatively  few  instances  where 
it  is  evidently  authentic,  by  the  desire  of  the  owner  to  show  a 
signed  specimen  of  the  work  of  some  artist  of  high  repute,  and 
the  fact  is  often  indicated  by  the  enoisi.  The  unobtrusiveness 
of  the  name  itself,  while  it  may  argue  for  a  signature,  is  by  no 
means  conclusive. 

Inscriptions. — Generally  speaking,  the  attempt  to  increase 
the  value  of  a  forgery  by  adding  an  inscription  of  any  kind  is 
very  apt  to  lead  to  detection.  As  a  rule,  and  especially  in  sig¬ 
nets,  these  are  reversed  on  the  gem  so  as  to  read  right  in  the 
impression.  Still,  there  are  many  exceptions  to  this,  and  on 
stones  intended  primarily  for  talismans  and  amulets  we  may 
say  there  is  no  rule.  It  is  by  some  blunder  in  an  inscription 
that  the  forger  often  gives  the  clue  for  his  own  detection :  a  style 
of  lettering  incongruous  with  the  period  of  the  gem  as  otherwise 
indicated,  improbable  subject  matter  of  the  inscription,  such 
as  descriptive  legends  on  pretty  much  anything  but  Etruscan 
scarabs  and  very  late  work,  or  yet  some  other  inconsistency. 

Of  course  considerable  knowledge  is  necessary  in  order  to 
apply  this  test.  The  ancients  were  fond  of  abbreviations 
and  elisions,  and  they  often  reversed  a  letter,  so  that  in  some 
cases,  what  the  modern  would  call  the  most  careful  correctness 
is,  in  itself,  the  basis  of  suspicion.  It  is  surprising,  however, 
how  quickly  one  can  familiarize  oneself  with  much  that,  at 
first  glance,  seems  well-nigh  hopelessly  involved.  Knowledge 
on  one  point  flashes  illumination  on  another,  and  inspires  the 
seeker  with  an  ardor  than  which  no  pleasure  is  greater  or  more 
profitable. 


PART  I 


HISTORY  OF  GEM  ENGRAVING— CHARACTERISTICS 
AND  DEVELOPMENTS  OF  EACH  PERIOD 


CHAPTER  I 


EARLY  WORK.— MINOAN  AND  MYCEN2EAN  GEMS.— 
THE  GREEK  MIDDLE  AGES.— MELIAN  OR  ISLAND 
STONES.— FROM  3000  (?)  TO  600  B.  C. 

MINOAN  GEMS 

The  earliest  gems  which,  from  their  character  and  place 
of  discovery  at  least,  may  be  called  Greek  have  been  found  in 
Crete.  “iEgean”,  “Minoan”,  “Mycenaean”  are  words  that  have 
hardly,  as  yet,  passed  beyond  the  stage  of  tentative  usage,  but 
perhaps  the  most  promising  characterisations  of  the  civiliza¬ 
tions  in  these  regions  from,  say,  3,000  to  900  B.  C.  (circa)  is  to 
call  that  of  Crete,  Minoan,  that  of  the  mainland,  Mycenaean, 
and  the  whole,  HSgean. 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  ethnic  relationship  of  this 
race  or  these  kindred  races  with  the  Hellenes  of  history,  the 
spirit  that  inspired  their  civilization  and  its  resultant  art  was 
one  and  the  same,  and  its  development,  despite  the  so-called 
“dark  ages”  that  fall  between  the  periods,  was,  in  a  measure, 
consecutive.  It  evidenced  a  motive  force  definitely  foreign  to 
that  which  dominated  the  Orientals  and  the  Egyptians ;  it  was 
an  art  that  revolted  at  the  very  beginning  from  the  conventional 
and  religious  trammels  that  have  always  hampered  that  of  the 
East;  it  exhaled  the  breath  of  individualism  and  freedom  —  a 
freshness,  a  buoyancy,  the  joy  in  life  for  its  own  sake — however 
defective  the  craftsmanship  that  strove  to  express  these  things. 
That  there  were  communication  and  reciprocal  influences  be¬ 
tween  Greece  and  the  islands  on  the  one  hand  and  Asia  and 
Africa  on  the  other  is  undoubted,  but  the  progressiveness  of  the 
West  and  the  conservatism  of  the  East  forbade  that  either 

23 


24 


MINOAN  GEMS 


should  be  copyists.  All  this  is  told  on  the  gems  with  a  clearness 
and  certainty  that  strike  the  keynote  of  the  story  of  these  far 
distant  ages. 

When  we  come  to  fix  a  date  for  our  earliest  Cretan  intaglios 
it  must  be  recognized  as  highly  speculative.  A  few  centuries 
then  mean  little  as  yet  to  the  wisest  theorists,  and  they  them¬ 
selves  recognize,  in  the  light  of  many  past  overthrows,  that  the 
data  tomorrow  discloses  may  negative  the  conclusions  of  today. 
Speculatively,  however,  and  giving  due  consideration  to  present 
knowledge  and  present  deductions,  let  us  place  the  birth  of 
Minoan  and  iEgean  gem-cutting  at  about  3000  B.  C.  It  may 
be  earlier,  but  let  it  go  at  that. 

Naturally  the  first  gems  were  the  softer  and  more  easily 
worked  stones  and  it  may  be  that  the  large  deposits  of  different 
colored  steatites  that  have  been  found  in  Crete  explain  her  pre¬ 
cedence  over  the  Greek  mainland  in  the  art.  Such  stones  could 
be  worked  by  hand-drills,  without  the  aid  of  the  wheel  and  of 
the  more  finished  tools,  and  it  is  probable  that  the  harder  gems 
were  not  cut  before  the  end  of  the  third  millennium,  perhaps  later. 
Furtwangler  has  maintained  in  his  Die  Antiken  Gemmen  that 
the  Mycenaean  stones  were  not  used  for  signets,  but  only  as 
talismans,  amulets  and  ornaments.  The  recent  discovery,  how¬ 
ever,  made  by  Mr.  D.  G.  Hogarth  at  Zacro,  in  Crete,  of  hundreds 
of  clay  sealings  (See  Journal  of  Hellenic  Studies,  Vol.  XXII) 
shows  that  at  least  the  Minoan  gems  of  an  early  period  were 
signets  as  well.  In  the  light  of  this  testimony  one  can  hardly 
accept  Furtwangler’s  limitation  of  uses  of  the  mainland  gems 
of  a  later  date. 

Considering  now  the  Cretan  stones,  we  find  a  variety  of 
shapes.  The  earliest  seem  to  have  been,  in  the  main,  rather 

short  triangular  prisms  of  soft  stone, 
bearing  more  or  less  rude  pictographic 
symbols  on  each  of  the  three  sides  (Fig. 
1;  PI.  I,  7).  The  designs  were  often  sur¬ 
rounded  by  elliptical  grooves  in  the  form 
of  cartouches  and  the  stones  were  pierced 
lengthwise.  Single  human  figures  or,  at 


Fig.  1. 


SHAPES  AND  SUBJECTS 


25 


most,  groups  of  two  or  three  in  various  attitudes  and  employ¬ 
ments,  birds,  animals,  vases  and  other  objects  are  found  on 
these  but  no  linear  symbols.  The  subjects  were  treated  more 
pictorially  and  were  less  conventionalized  than  those  of  later 
date.  Often  the  human  figure  shown  on  one  side  seems  to  rep¬ 
resent  the  owner  and  his  employment,  as  that  of  shepherd. 
Monsters  are  also  found,  such  as  a  lion-headed  demon  which 
perhaps  represents  some  semi-divine  protector  or  mythical  an¬ 
cestor  of  the  owner.  Groups  of  dots  occur  on  some  stones,  per¬ 
haps  with  the  idea  of  filling  up  the  field,  as  was  often  done 
with  a  feather  design  or  some  other  ornamental  motive  or,  in 
many  cases,  as  Evans  maintains,  these  dots  may  have  a  com¬ 
mercial  significance  and  be  part  of  a  numerical  system.  In  his 
Scripta  Minoa  he  has  established  pretty  clearly  his  claim  that 
the  Cretan  gems  show  a  definite  development  of  the  symbolic 
idea  through  pictographs  and  hieroglyphics  systematized  about 
2800-2200  B.  C.,  and  gradually  conventionalized  toward  2000 
B.  C.,  into  linear  characters.  Together  with  this  development 
on  the  one  side  there  was  naturally,  on  the  other,  the  growth  of 
purely  art  ideals,  until,  finally,  the  two  ideas  were  disassociated 
and  what  was  picture-writing  became  the  picture  or  the  writing, 
as  the  case  might  be. 

Later,  the  tendency  as  to  shape  was  to  elongate  the  trian¬ 
gular  prism  form  (Fig.  2).  The  stones  were  still  soft  ones, 

steatite,  serpentine,  etc.,  either 
with  or  without  the  cartouche 
groove.  Both  hieroglyphic  and 
linear  symbols  were  then  used 
and  one  or  more  sides  of  the 
prism  were  often  occupied  by 
purely  decorative  motives,  some- 
from  those  on  the  Egyptian 


Fig, 


times  apparently  derived 
scarabs  of  the  12th  dynasty. 

Finally,  and  at  a  period  co-asval  with  the  best  Mycenaean 
gems  of  the  mainland,  we  find  the  elongated  triangular  prism 
worked  in  the  harder  stones :  jasper,  carnelian,  chalcedony, 
crystal,  amethyst,  and  hematite,  often  with  the  cartouche  and 


26 


MIXOAN  GEMS 


the  perforated  ends  surrounded  by  a  triangular  groove.  On 
these  are  hieroglyphics  in  their  most  conventionalized  forms. 

Quadrangular  prisms  now  occur  (PI.  I,  1),  sometimes  with 
the  four  sides  equilateral,  and,  also,  other  shapes,  including  the 

Mycenaean  lenticulars  (PI.  I, 
3,  5,  8,  9,  10)  often  with  de¬ 
signs  on  both  sides,  glandular 
stones  (PI.  I,  2, 11)  and  other 
mainland  forms,  and,  more 
rarely,  gems  identical  in 
shape  with  modern  watch- 
charm  seals  (Fig.  3),  with 
variously  fashioned  tops  or  handles,  elaborately  worked  and 
with  the  design  cut  on  the  base.  There  is  one,  an  agate,  some¬ 
what  in  the  form  of  a  scaraboid,  the  relief  side  of  which  is 
worked  with  a  convoluted  design  ( Fig.  4 ) ,  and  a  unique,  heart- 
shaped  amethyst  with  a  flying  eagle  and  other  characters, 
figured  by  Evans  in  his  first  article. 


Fig.  3. 


Probably  co-seval  with  the  shorter  triangular  stones  are, 
also,  many  button-shaped  seals  (Fig.  5)  bored  through  the  top 
and  bearing  often  12th  dynasty  scarab  decorative  motives,  and, 
much  more  rarely,  truncated  cones  that  may  have  been  derived 
at  an  early  date  from  northern  Syria.  All  are  pierced  for  sus¬ 
pension  from  the  wrist  or  neck  of  the  owner. 

In  considering  the  different  shapes  it  will  be  well  to  bear 
in  mind  that  hard  and  fast  rules  are  difficult  to  frame  in  view 
of  the  present  state  of  knowledge,  if,  indeed,  such  rules  can  ever 
be  justified.  It  is  largely  a  matter  of  apparent  tendencies,  and 
forms  other  than  those  yet  noted  probably  exist.  At  a  time 
when  cutting  the  stones  was  difficult,  it  is  easy  to  imagine  that 


SUBJECTS 


27 


the  original  lines  of  a  carnelian  or  chalcedony  pebble  may  have 
had  a  good  deal  to  do  with  the  shape  of  the  finished  gem. 

As  for  the  subjects  engraved  on  the  Cretan  gems  there  is 
found  considerable  variety  and,  at  the  same  time,  a  constant 
repetition  of  many  devices  developing  from  the  pictographic  to 
the  conventionalized  and  linear  and  seeming  to  indicate  clearly 
their  significance  as  characters  of  a  written  language.  Such 
symbols  as  human  eyes  (PI.  I,  lb),  a  bent  leg  (PL  I,  1c),  St. 
Andrew’s  crosses  with  balls  at  the  end  of  each  arm  (PI.  I,  la, 
Id),  broad  arrows,  a  head  pictured  instead  of  the  animal  to 
which  it  belongs,  a  spray  for  a  plant,  and  indications  of  a 
gesture-language,  like  a  bent  arm,  the  hand  with  open  palm,  and 
crossed  arms  with  the  thumbs  bent  back,  recur  constantly.  Of 
other  but  perhaps  somewhat  cognate  designs  are  a  wolfs  head 
with  protruding  tongue,  a  dove  preening  its  wing,  a  ship  with 
two  crescents  above  (PL  I,  la),  a  pig  standing  before  a  door, 
a  fish  (Pl.  I,  6c),  implements  (Pl.  I,  Id)  and  a  harp,  some  of 
which,  in  all  probability,  indicate  the  callings  of  the  owners. 

Also  there  are  animals  (Pl.  I,  2,  3,  4a,  6c,  7a,  7c,  10)  ;  deer, 
wolves  (or  dogs),  goats,  lions,  bulls,  tortoises,  four  owls  group¬ 
ed  around  a  stellar  disc  with  twelve  rays,  a  cow  suckling  calf, 
a  she-goat  and  kid,  birds,  a  duck  standing,  a  flying  dove,  scor¬ 
pions,  crabs,  fish,  shells,  and  the  spider,  common  here  but  un¬ 
known  on  Mycenaean  gems.  Often  the  animal’s  head  is  turned 
back  (Pl.  I,  3).  Of  these  designs  many  are  rudely  cut  while 
others  are  naturalistic  and  spirited.  Vegetable  forms,  like 
flowers  and  trees,  and  motives  drawn  from  them  are  common 
(Pl.  I,  lc,  9),  and  an  eagle  with  zig-zag  lines  in  the  field  doubt¬ 
less  expresses  the  idea  of  the  thunder-bird.  The  last  occurs  on  a 
late  gem.  On  one  are  four  vases ;  on  another  a  solar  (or  stellar) 
disk  with  revolving  rays.  The  charioteer  driving  two  horses 
(Pl.  I,  11)  represents  the  best  period  of  Minoan  work.  Many 
show  hunting  scenes  and  animals  attacking  their  prey  or  two 
or  more  men  in  active  groups  (Pl.  I,  8),  sometimes,  apparently, 
fighting  or  engaged  in  some  sport.  Often  the  work  is  so  rude 
that  it  is  not  easy  to  specify  the  subject  (Pl.  I,  4,  7).  The 
human  figures  are  apt  to  be  what  we  would  call  wasp-waisted 


28 


MINOAN  GEMS 


(PI.  I,  2,  8,  11),  and  the  female  ones  often  wear  bell-like  skirts 
(PI.  I,  6b ).  Among  the  miscellaneous  devices  are  shields,  lotos 
flowers,  labyrinth  schemes,  decorative  patterns,  often  evolved 
from  the  spiral,  as  on  Egyptian  scarabs,  a  canopy  with  four 
forked  supports,  and  five  towers  standing  on  a  hill. 

Monster  types  (PI.  I,  7b,  9)  are  very  common  and  were, 
doubtless,  held  to  be  luck-bringing.  Among  them  are  a  human 
figure  with  bull’s  head,  a  man-stag,  a  man-boar,  an  eagle- woman 
in  variant  forms,  grading  down  to  mere  symbolic  representa¬ 
tions,  a  winged  sphins,  a  Pegasos  (or  hippokamp),  a  double¬ 
headed  dog  with  a  single  wing  rising  between  the  heads,  lion¬ 
headed  figures  with  human  arms  and  birds’  bodies,  birds’  heads 
with  lion  masks,  and,  also,  many  bird  masks  and  bull  masks. 
These  mask  types  tend  constantly  to  develop  into  mere  con¬ 
ventional  representations  of  the  idea.  There  is  a  sphinx  with 
a  cap  and  butterfly  wings,  a  grotesque  human  bust  set  in  a 
butterfly’s  (or  bat’s)  wing,  the  rear  view  of  a  squatting  griffin¬ 
like  monster  with  butterfly  wings,  a  monster  with  human  head, 
lion’s  legs  and  wings  covering  the  body,  winged  human  figures, 
and  even  a  pair  of  raised  arms  with  an  antler  between  for  a 
head.  These  examples  will  give  a  fair  idea  of  the  scope  of  the 
Cretan  representations.  Not  infrequently  is  shown  a  heraldic 
tendency  toward  balanced  groupings,  such  as  a  pedestal  with 
lions  regardant  on  either  side  (PI.  I,  3).  The  wings  with  which 
many  of  the  monsters  are  equipped  are  of  several  types.  That 
of  the  hawk  or  eagle  is  much  the  commonest  and  there  is  also 
the  butterfly  (or  bat)  type  and  the  purely  decorative,  curving 
forward  or  like  a  spiral.  Both  the  idea  of  heraldic  grouping 
and  the  wing  tips  curving  forward  show  a  distinct  oriental 
influence. 

Cult  or  sacerdotal  pictures  representing  worship  are  also 
found.  An  armed  goddess  with  a  lion  is  probably  of  this 
character,  as  is,  also,  the  goddess  with  the  bow  (PI.  I,  5).  In 
the  field  of  many  gems,  along  with  the  pictorial  design,  are  what 
seem  to  be  purely  linear  symbols  (PI.  I,  1,  2).  The  swastika  is 
cut  in  the  field  of  several  and,  more  rarely,  the  cross.  The  lat¬ 
ter,  doubtless,  was  suggested  by  some  Egyptian  type.  It  is 


CHRONOLOGY 


29 


difficult  to  place  even  approximate  dates  of  many  pictures, 
especially  those  of  which  only  the  impressions  were  found  and 
where  we  have  not  the  material  as  a  guide,  while  mere  merit  of 
the  cutting  is  not  a  safe  criterion,  since  here,  as  later  and  every¬ 
where  at  the  best  periods  of  each  art  development,  there  must 
always  have  been  many,  poor  workmen  who  cut  cheap  stones 
cheaply  for  poorer  patrons.  When,  however,  the  idea  of  the 
composition  is  ambitious  it  is  fair  to  assume  we  are  not  far 
from  some  cultured  epoch,  as  in  the  cases  of  a  man  in  a  boat 
repelling  a  sea  monster,  a  pugilist  before  a  column  and  a  scene 
which  looks  as  if  it  might  have  been  taken  from  a  bull  ring. 

It  seems  probable  that  the  best  period  of  Minoan  art  was 
somewhere  around  1800  to  1600  B.  C.  This  civilization  ap¬ 
parently  closes  about  1200  B.  C. 

MYCEN./EAN  GEMS 

Turning  now  from  the  island  thalassocracy  of  Crete  to  the 
mainland  of  Greece;  from  Minoan  civilization  to  Mycenaean,  but 
all  of  kindred  type  and  iEgean,  we  find  a  somewhat  similar 
development  and  collapse :  a  civilization  of  a  high  order  running 
from  somewhere  in  the  early  part  of  the  third  millennium  to 
1200  B.  C.,  according  to  Dr.  Furtwangler,  and  extended  by 
other  investigators  down  to  1000  B.  C.  or  even  several  centuries 
later.  One  reason,  perhaps,  for  the  uncertainty  of  these  dates 
lies  in  the  fact  that  the  invasion  of  the  Northern  races,  probably 
a  kindred  but  more  barbaric  stock,  was  rather  in  the  nature  of 
a  gradual  migration,  and  the  so-called  cataclasm  was  really  a 
series  of  cataclasms  resulting  in  a  decay  that  reached  its  climax 
in  ultimate  barbaric  ascendency.  Furtwangler  puts  the  best 
period  of  Mycenaean  art  at  from  1600  to  1400  B.  C.,  a  date  that 
we  might  fairly  extend  somewhat  earlier  in  view  of  the  Cretan 
revelations. 

Considering  the  purely  Mycenaean  gems,  these,  like  the 
Cretan,  were  first  soft  stones,  usually  steatite,  three-sided  with 
approximately  right-angled  sides,  cut  and  bored  by  hand  and 
bearing  rough,  primitive  designs  of  men,  animals,  vases,  orna¬ 
ments  and  characters. 


30 


MYCENAEAN  GEMS 


In  the  best  periods  we  find  the  purely  art  element  pre¬ 
dominating  and  the  characters  less  used.  Soft  stones,  cut  by 
hand  with  the  drill  and  graving  tool,  were  still  used  for 
ordinary  work,  but  intaglios  of  a  high  class  were  engraved 
with  the  wheel  on  carnelian,  chalcedony,  banded  agate  and 
sardonyx  cut  both  parallel  with  and  across  the  layers. 
Amethyst  and  rock-crystal  are  not  rare,  and  hematite,  por¬ 
phyry,  serpentine  and  jasper  are  also  found.  Glass  pastes 
were,  at  least,  known  during  the  late  Mycenaean  Epoch. 

The  form  of  the  later  stones  was  usually  that  of  a  flat 
disc  or  lens  (Fig.  6)  always  bored  through.  Less  common 


shapes  were,  the  so-called  glandular  (Fig.  7),  and,  rarer  still, 

r  ’  * 


Fig.  8. 


Fig.  9. 


Fig.  10. 


The  character  of  the  work  on  the  harder  stones  is  often 
of  a  high  order.  The  makers  lacked  the  patience  to  elaborate 
details  such  as  the  Asiatic  craftsmen  delighted  in,  but  they 
were  artists  to  a  degree  to  which  the  others  never  attained. 


SUBJECTS 


31 


Freshness,  liveliness,  naturalness,  enthusiasm,  originality  and 
imagination,  often  verging  upon  the  fantastic,  characterized 
their  work.  They  had  a  penchant  for  movement  and  violent 
action,  though  the  execution  tended  to  stiffness  and  constraint 
despite  the  freedom  of  idea.  Muscles  and  women’s  breasts  and 
hips  were  accentuated  and  the  hair  was  freely  handled.  Clothes 
gave  the  form  of  the  body,  but  folds  and  the  skeleton  within 
the  form  were  beyond  them  as  were  perspective  and  fore¬ 
shortening.  Above  all,  they  did  not  borrow  or  copy.  Deco¬ 
ration  was  worked  out  to  some  extent  and  a  controlling  motive 
was  to  fill  the  whole  picture  surface  of  the  stone,  even  at  a 
sacrifice  of  pose  and  grace.  Through  it  all  run  the  signs  of  a 
powerful  folk-lore. 

The  subjects  are,  in  the  main,  similar  to  those  on  the 
Minoan  seals.  Animals  predominate :  lions,  bulls,  goats,  boars, 
pigs  and  deer,  with  their  heads  and  legs  frequently  much 
distorted  so  as  to  fill  the  space  (PI.  II,  2,  3,  4,  5,  7,  8,  9,  11, 
13,  14,  16,  17,  18,  19,  20,  21).  Sometimes  these  were  grouped 
heraldically  (PI.  II,  14),  often  back  to  back  with  heads  re¬ 
gardant,  and  a  column,  an  altar  or  the  sacred  tree  of  the 
East  between.  More  rare  is  such  a  fantastic  grouping  as  is 
shown  on  a  gem  on  which  the  bodies  of  three  animals  are 
provided  with  but  one  head.  Often  one  beast  is  attacking 
another.  Also  many  birds  are  found,  fishes  (PI.  II,  10),  es¬ 
pecially  dolphins,  and  trees.  Much  more  rarely  only  the  head 
of  an  animal  was  pictured.  Of  inanimate  subjects  there  are 
ships,  vases,  buildings  and  geometric  decorations,  and  one  gem 
seems  to  show  a  thicket  or  wood  (PI.  II,  6). 

Turning  to  the  human  types,  these  are,  for  the  most  part, 
worked  into  representations  of  combats  (PI.  II,  15),  chariots 
(see  PI.  I,  11),  hunting  (PI.  II,  4),  ceremonial  dances,  sacrifi¬ 
cial  scenes  (PI.  II,  9)  and  sacerdotal  worship.  The  men  are 
apt  to  be  slender  waisted  as  on  the  Cretan  gems  (PI.  II,  10, 
15),  and  the  women  usually  wear  the  same  bell-like  skirts 
(PI.  II,  12).  There  is  a  suggestion  in  the  prominence  often 
given  to  female  figures  that  the  position  of  women  in  the 
Mycenaean  age  was  not  low. 


32 


GBEEK  MIDDLE  AGES 


The  cult  element  was  in  evidence  in  this  art.  Of  divine 
types  we  find  representations  of  both  gods  and  heroes  (PI.  II, 
1).  Ares  is  shown  armed  with  a  spear  and,  also,  a  goddess 
dressed  in  long  robes,  holding,  sometimes,  a  bow  and,  sometimes, 
poppy-heads  or  a  mirror.  The  reflection  in  the  mirror  may 
carry  the  suggestion  of  the  spirit  idea.  She  is  accompanied 
by  a  swan  or  a  ram,  tHe  figure  and  attributes  denoting  some 
combination  of  the  Artemis  and  Aphrodite  cults  (PI.  II,  12). 

Demonic  monsters  of  mixed  forms  (PI.  II,  1)  are  frequent, 
as  on  the  Cretan  stones.  These  are  usually  human  to  the 
waist  and  have  wings  and  animals’  heads.  The  man-bull  and 
man-lion  were  most  favored;  also  the  sphinx  and  griffin  types 
are  found  with  varied  developments  (PL  II,  2,  11,  16). 

Before  closing  this  description  of  the  Mycenaean  gems,  I 
must  quote  a  disquieting  paragraph  from  a  letter  written  to 
me  by  Dr.  Furtwiingler  and  dated  April  10,  1907.  He  writes : 

“A  very  dangerous  kind  of  forgeries  comes  in  the  last 
years  from  Athens,  very  clever  imitations  of  Mycenaean  and 
Archaic  Greek  gems,  sometimes,  even,  with  inscriptions.” 
(This  probably  refers  to  the  latter  class,  as  a  Mycenaean  gem 
with  an  inscription  other  than  pictographic  or  hieroglyphic 
would  expose  itself  promptly).  “One  must  be  very  cautious 
against  these  things.  The  forgeries  betray  themselves  by 
mistakes  in  the  forms  of  the  stones  and  by  the  quality  of  the 
material,  and,  of  course,  in  the  style;  but  great  experience  is 
needed  to  guard  against  them.” 

GREEK  MIDDLE  AGES 

With  the  decay  of  Mycenaean  culture  came  what  are 
called  the  Dark  Ages  in  Greece  which  extend  down  into  the 
seventh  century  B.  C.  The  work  on  hard  stones  was  no  longer 
possible.  Only  soft  and  opaque  material  that  could  be  cut 
without  use  of  the  wheel  seems  to  have  been  available. 
Probably  little  of  this  was  done  in  Greece  itself,  since  Oriental 
forms,  unusual  or  not  found  in  the  Mycenaean  Epoch,  now 
appear;  not,  it  is  true,  the  cylinders,  but  flat  stones  with  a 


SHAPES  AND  SUBJECTS 


33 


Fig.  13. 


bored  handle  (Fig.  11),  rough  cone  shapes  (Fig.  12)  grading 
down  to  the  flattened  hemisphere  (Fig.  13),  from  which  it  is 
possible  that  the  shape  called  the  scaraboid,  so  important  at 
a  later  period,  wTas  developed.  Some  few  gems  that  can  be 
called  scaraboids  (Fig.  14)  are  found  even  now.  At  first 
circular  forms  of  the  engraved  field  prevailed  and,  afterward, 
elliptical.  There,  too,  were  variant  disc  shapes  (Figs.  15,  16, 


Fig.  14.  Fig.  15.  Fig.  16.  Fig-.  17. 


and  17)  and  approximately  truncated  cones  engraved,  usually, 
on  both  sides,  while  the  flattened  parallelopipedon,  usually 
pierced,  was  borrowed  from  the  Egyptians  and  engraved  on 
one,  two,  four  or  all  six  surfaces.  More  rarely  the  top  is  bev¬ 
eled  off,  making  a  smaller  picture  surface  above.  We  find, 
also,  imitations  of  Egyptian  scarabs,  both  as  to  form  and 
technique,  in  blue  Egyptian  pottery,  glass  and  soft  stones, 
with,  occasionally,  some  other  figure  substituted  for  the 
beetle  relief.  Scarabs,  too,  were  imported  from  Egypt  and 
Phoenicia  in  considerable  numbers. 

There  was  a  distinct  limitation  of  subjects  in  this  period. 
No  demonic  figures  appear,  though  PI.  Ill,  lb  seems  to 
be  an  exception.  Generally  we  find  only  very  rudely  drawn 
men  (PI.  Ill,  2,  6,  8),  a  few  European  animals  (PI.  Ill,  la,  2, 

3,  5b,  6,  7)  and  various  geometric  decorative  designs  (PI.  Ill, 

4,  5a).  Through  it  all  there  seems  to  be  a  rising  Oriental 
influence  shown  by  the  frequent  occurrence  of  the  tree  of  life 
(PI.  Ill,  7)  and  of  wings  with  the  tips  bent  forward  as  in  the 
Melian  gems  (PI.  Ill,  10,  11). 


34 


MELIAN  STONES 


MELIAN  STONES 

Toward  the  end  of  the  epoch,  in  the  seventh  century  B.  C., 
the  Ionic  Greeks  began  to  take  the  lead,  as  indicated  by  the 
triumph  of  the  Oriental  ideals,  though  the  earlier  lessons  of 
exactness  still  controlled  and  regulated  a  new  and  growing 
Greek  art,  original  and  yet  receptive  of  foreign  ideas. 

At  this  time  there  is  definite  evidence  at  Melos  and,  to  a 
less  degree,  at  other  points,  of  a  recrudescence  of  Mycenaean 
forms.  These  gems  are  known  as  “Island  stones”  or  “Melian 
stones”  from  their  principal  place  of  discovery,  and  seem  to 
have  had  only  a  local  meaning.  Perhaps  they  should  be  placed 
in  the  next  chapter,  as  being  more  akin  to  Archaic  Greek  art 
than  to  Mycenaean,  but  it  seems  more  orderly  to  clear  away 
here  all  the  early  and  mixed  developments. 

Very  few  of  these  gems  were  engraved  by  the  wheel  or 
on  hard,  translucent  stones.  Most  of  them  are  crudely  execut¬ 
ed  hand-work  on  steatite  and  other  soft  materials. 

The  shapes  are  for  the  great  part  Mycenaean;  lenticular 
and  glandular,  beside  which  are  found  some  of  the  Cretan 
forms,  three  sided  prisms,  conical  and  hemispherical  stones, 
one  of  these  last  being  engraved  on  the  convex  side.  There 
are  also  a  few  cylinders,  scarabs  are  more  common  and  we 
have  somewhat  more  frequent  examples  of  the  scaraboid. 

The  style  of  the  pictures,  however,  is  nearer  to  that  of  the 
Archaic  Greek,  though  the  twistings  and  contortions  of  the 
bodies,  popular  in  the  earlier  epoch,  were  frankly,  usually 
badly,  imitated  (PI.  Ill,  12).  The  work  lacks  the  imaginative 
freshness  and  the  naturalism  of  that  on  the  Mycenaean  gems. 

Among  the  subjects,  animals  were  most  popular;  a  small 
number  of  conventional  types  being  constantly  repeated.  The 
front  legs  are  generally  raised,  as  if  for  jumping  or  galloping 
(PI.  Ill,  11,  12,  15,  16)  ;  the  hind  legs  are  usually  together, 
when  often  only  the  nearer  one  is  represented  (PI.  Ill,  15,  16). 
A  favorite  pose  was  the  regardant  (PI.  Ill,  14,  15,  16),  but 
more  conventional  and  stiff  than  in  the  Mycenaean  types. 
Sometimes  they  showed  only  the  front  half  of  the  body  or 


SUBJECTS 


35 


two  front  halves  symmetrically  arranged  (See  PL  III,  la).  Hair 
and  feathers  were  indicated  by  parallel  lines  and  there  was 
often  considerable  ornamentation  with  little  borings  (PL  III, 
12,  14),  arrow-feather  motives  (Pl.  III,  11,  12)  and,  more 
rarely,  rosettes,  lotos  leaves,  palms,  etc.  The  favorite  animals 
were  goats  (Pl.  III,  12,  15),  lions,  deer,  oxen,  boars  (PL  III, 
13),  water-birds,  lizards  and  fishes,  especially  the  cuttle-fish. 
Sea-monsters  (Pl.  III,  9,  10)  and  winged  animals  were  often 
shown  and  the  wings  are  usually  bent  forward  under  a  deco¬ 
rative  impulse  that,  beginning  even  in  Cretan  art,  pertained 
through  the  Archaic  Greek  period  (Pl.  III,  10,  11,  16).  The 
sphinx  and  griffin  (Pl.  III,  16)  were  favorites  and  the  Chimaira 
(Pl.  III,  14)  appeared  for  the  first  time.  Dragons  also  were 
pictured  and,  later,  winged  horses  (PL  III,  11),  goats  with 
fishes’  tails,  winged  man-demons,  often  with  fish  combinations, 
snake-demons,  gorgons  and  the  centaur  borrowed  from  the 
East.  Otherwise  the  Mycenaean  demonic  types  are  lacking. 
Mythological  subjects,  too,  were  represented,  such  as  Herakles 
fighting  with  what  seems  to  be  a  sea-demon,  the  hero  being 
shown  naked  and  with  a  quiver  (Pl.  III,  9),  and  Prometheus, 
chained  to  his  rock,  preyed  on  by  the  eagle.  A  prone  figure 
attacked  by  a  large  bird  (Pl.  III,  17a)  may  be  either  Prome¬ 
theus  or  Tityos,  though,  if  it  be  the  latter,  as  Furtwangler 
suggests,  it  is  rather  surprising  that  only  one  vulture  is 
shown.  Perseus  and  Medousa  are  also  found. 

Naturally  there  were  many  purely  human  figures  and 
scenes,  such  as  a  charioteer  driving  four  horses,  and  the  en¬ 
gravers  even  succeeded,  though  rather  rudely,  in  picturing 
emotions,  such  as  rage  or  sorrow.  Inanimate  objects,  like 
trees,  ships  and  vases,  were  rare. 

With  this  summary  we  may  close  the  story  of  the  early 
gems  and  take  up  the  consecutive  development  of  purely  Greek 
art. 


CHAPTER  II 


ARCHAIC  GREEK  GEMS 

From  the  seventh  to  the  sixth  century  the  use  of  the 
seal  in  Greece  increased,  so  that  we  find  in  Diogenes  Laertius 
an  account  of  one  of  Solon’s  laws  which  forbade  a  gem-cutter 
to  retain  a  copy  of  any  seal  he  had  made. 

Under  the  heading  of  “Archaic  Greek”  we  shall  consider 
the  gems  of  from  600  to  about  480  B.  C.,  a  period  within  which 
the  art  of  gem-cutting  developed  through  archaism  into  the 
best  that  the  world  has  ever  produced.  It  may  be  divided  into 
two  epochs:  the  purely  archaic  from  600  to  500  B.  C.,  and  the 
transition  epoch  from  500  B.  C.  to  about  480.  The  so-called 
“Best  Period”,  running  on  to  the  end  of  the  century,  has  been 
treated  by  some  writers  with  these,  but  I  prefer  to  consider  it 
in  the  next  chapter. 

During  the  earlier  part  of  the  transition  epoch  there 
still  remained  some  measure  of  archaic  stiffness  which 
gradually  disappeared,  and  we  find,  at  last,  the  greatest  breadth 
of  conception  together  with  the  perfect  freedom  of  execution 
which  marks  the  summit  of  the  art. 

In  the  sixth  century  the  prevailing  form  was  the  scarab, 
derived  from  earlier  Egyptian  importations,  but  the  scaraboid 
was  not  uncommon,  varying  in  shape  from 
Fig.  14  to  Fig.  18.  Since,  for  the  Greeks, 
the  scarab  held  no  religious  significance 
but  represented  to  them  merely  a  decorative 
motive,  as  the  art  of  the  intaglio  advanced, 
the  back  of  the  gem  became  less  important  and  it  was  found 
much  easier  to  round  it  off.  The  suggestion  from  the  flattened 
cone  forms  was  obvious,  and  the  scaraboid  seems  a  perfectly 
natural  development  on  several  lines.  Incidentally  the  older 
Mycenaean  forms  disappear. 

36 


MATERIALS  AND  FORMS 


37 


Materials. — Now  are  found  the  beautiful  hard  stones  cut 
by  the  wheel — materials  and  methods  little  known  in  Egypt. 
The  soft  stones  engraved  by  hand  gradually  fall  into  disuse 
except  a  clear,  greenish  steatite  quite  common  among  the 
Melian  gems  of  the  seventh  century  and,  also,  though  more 
rarely,  black  steatite.  Glass  pastes,  too,  appear  occasionally, 
especially  a  dark  blue  glass,  perhaps  intended  to  imitate  lapis 
lazuli,  also  a  green  and,  toward  the  end  of  the  period,  a  white. 

The  characteristic  substances,  however,  were  the  trans¬ 
parent  quartzes ;  carnelian,  chalcedony,  banded  agate  and 
sardonyx  cut  across  the  layers,  except  where,  as  in  the  case 
of  eye-agates,  the  appearance  of  the  stone  suggested  something 
mystical.  Less  commonly  are  found  green  jasper  and  rock 
crystal.  Plasma  and  hematite  are  very  rare  and,  later,  drop  out 
almost  entirely.  Amethyst  does  not  seem  to  have  been  used 
at  all. 

The  scarabs  of  this  period  are  generally  quite  small  and 
are  marked  by  a  lively  and  faithful  rendering  of  the  beetle 
relief,  not  however  elaborately  worked  out  in  detail  as  were 
the  Etruscan  and  lacking  the  Etruscan  ornamentation  around 
the  base.  Furtwangler  distinguishes  a  certain  cheap  class  of 
scarabs  and  scaraboids  as  Peloponnesian.  The  scaraboids 
throughout  the  entire  period  were  often  much  larger  than  the 
scarabs,  and  in  the  fifth  century  they  become  the  prevailing 
form — among  the  Ionic  group  almost  the  exclusive  one,  though 
in  Greece  proper  and  Magna  Griecia  the  scarab  was  still 
popular.  Sometimes  there  is  substituted  for  the  beetle  an 
animaFs  head  or  a  whole  animal,  a  mask,  a  seiren  or  a  human 
figure  in  some  attitude.  Rarely  there  were  hemispherical  and 
disc  shaped  gems,  and  ring-stones  with  the  engraved  surface 
convex  began  to  appear  toward  the  end  of  the  period,  as  we 
shall  note  more  particularly  in  the  next  chapter. 

A  characteristic  of  Archaic  ideas  was  the  filling  of  the 
entire  field  of  the  picture  surface,  an  end  often  attained  by 
sacrificing  a  more  natural  attitude  to  one  that  is  stiff  and 
forced,  though  to  no  such  extent  as  in  earlier  periods.  The 
design  was  always  surrounded  by  a  border,  generally  a  milled 


38 


ARCHAIC  PERIOD 


border  of  oblique  strokes,  sometimes  one  of  dots  and  very 
rarely  a  dot  and  line  (Fig.  19;  See  PI.  VIII,  1).  Occasionally 
Greek  scarab  designs  are  surrounded  by  a  simple  line  like  the 
Phoenician,  but  not  uncommonly  we  find  the  border  worked 

H33EEEZEEEE3I  O®®0©OOG> 

Fig.  19.  Fig.  20.  Fig.  21. 

out  with  more  elaborate  richness  such  as  Fig.  20  ( See,  also,  PI. 
IV,  2)  or  Fig.  21.  The  picture,  while  generally  adapted  to  the 
border,  often  had  a  line  to  stand  on  as  in  the  Phoenician  scarabs 
and  sometimes,  especially  among  the  Eastern  Greeks,  the  space 
below  was  filled  with  crossed  lines  or,  more  rarely,  with  some 
definite  design  like  a  lotos  flower  or  an  animal  mask  (PI.  V,  19). 

Technique.- — The  interior  of  the  engraving  on  the  old 
Archaic  stones  was  generally  not  polished,  even  in  the  most 
carefully  worked  out  examples.  Later  we  find  a  faint  polish, 
but  only  at  the  end  of  the  epoch  appears,  occasionally,  a  com¬ 
plete  polish  of  the  picture  which  is  characteristic  of  the  best 
stones.  Details  of  anatomy  were  avoided  at  first.  The  artists 
were  enough  of  artists  to  be  cautious  and  confine  themselves 
within  the  limits  of  their  powers.  The  naked  figure  of  the 
early  Archaic  style  is  characteristic  in  its  tendency  to  rep¬ 
resent  the  straight  stomach  muscles  between  breast  and  navel 
by  three  or  more  rolls  (PI.  IV,  4;  V,  1,  15,  16)  while  in  the  de¬ 
veloped  and  later  style  there  are  but  two  as  in  nature.  As 
early  as  500  B.  C.,  the  beginning  of  the  transition  period,  the 
artists  seem  to  have  understood  the  human  body  fully.  All 
the  lines  and  muscles  are  portrayed  accurately,  if  often  rudely : 
the  linea  alba  running  down  from  the  navel  and  the  muscles 
of  legs,  side  and  back,  as  in  the  figures  of  the  Aigina  pediments. 
The  early  Archaic  style  indicates  clothing  by  a  few  rough 
parallel  lines  (PI.  IV,  6;  V,  4),  the  later,  by  fine  folds  (PI.  V, 
2,  7,  17).  In  the  old  style,  hair  and  beard  are  done  with  paral¬ 
lel  strokes  (PI.  IV,  1,  16,  24;  V,  4,  23)  and,  rarely,  by  a  series 
of  little  drill  holes  like  strings  of  beads  (PI.  IV,  12;  V,  1,  15). 
In  the  later  Archaic  work  the  hair  and  beard  are  shown  care¬ 
fully  curled  (PI.  IV,  17,  21). 


TECHNIQUE  AND  SUBJECTS 


39 


A  characteristic  of  the  older  gems  is  the  lack  of  variety — 
almost  uniformity — of  subject  and  motive.  These  are  repeated 
again  and  again  with  slight  variations,  often  as  if  by  the  same 
hand.  Kneeling  figures  (PI.  IV,  2,  12,  17,  19,  24;  V,  4,  6,  8, 
15,  20,  23),  occasionally  between  two  animals  heraldically 
arranged,  and  figures  running  with  the  bent  knee  action  were 
popular  (PI.  IV,  23),  probably  because  they  filled  out  the 
space  more  easily,  and  the  upper  part  of  kneeling  figures  was 
represented  first  in  profile  and,  later,  facing  out.  Still,  there 
was  little  of  the  frank  distortion,  especially  of  animal  forms, 
which  the  Mycenaean  and  Melian  artists  had  relied  on  as 
space-filling  devices. 

By  500  B.  C.  the  subjects  and  representations  of  motion 
show  more  variety,  and  the  kneeling  motive,  though  still  used, 
is  handled  with  more  power  and  spirit.  Figures  are  some¬ 
times  drawn  bearing  the  weight  on  one  leg,  the  front  of  which 
shows,  with  the  other  slightly  bent  and  in  profile.  Later  both 
legs  are  shown  facing.  Many  of  the  figures  bend  and  turn, 
and  the  artists  showed  a  distinct  preference  for  front  or  back 
views  of  the  body. 

Subjects. — There  are  but  few  representations  of  the  prin¬ 
cipal  deities  on  these  gems.  Apollo  appears  with  lyre  (PI.  V, 
15)  or  stag  and  the  Hyacinthine  Apollo  holding  a  flower,  as 
on  the  coins  of  Tarentum  (PI.  IV,  24).  Rarely  he  has  his 
earlier  attributes,  the  sceptre  and  sparrow-hawk,  and  on  one 
gem  he  is  mounted  on  a  swan  and  holding  out  a  branch. 
Artemis,  with  or  without  wings,  as  a  protectress  of  animals, 
is  found  in  the  early  Archaic  period  (PI.  IV,  6).  Hermes,  the 
messenger  and  the  god  of  trade,  was  common,  sometimes  in  a 
long  tunic  (PI.  V,  17)  but  generally  naked  save  for  his  short 
mantle  (PI.  IV,  17).  His  hat,  usually  the  broad-brimmed 
petasos,  but  in  some  cases  a  pointed  Eastern  cap,  is  sometimes 
winged,  sometimes  not,  as  is  the  case  with  his  feet.  His  hair 
is  long  on  the  earlier,  short  on  the  later  gems,  and  he  is  un¬ 
bearded.  Athena  also  appears,  sometimes  winged,  and  the 
allied  cults  of  Hermes  and  Aphrodite,  from  which  sprang  the 
Hermaphrodite  idea,  may  possibly  be  represented  in  a  gem 


40 


ARCHAIC  PERIOD 


bearing  a  two-faced  head,  male  and  female.  A  national  type 
is  shown  in  the  Athenian  gem  bearing  the  head  of  Athena  and 
an  owl. 

Of  the  heroes,  Herakles  is  by  far  the  most  usual.  Often 
he  is  kneeling,  running  or  holding  a  bow  or  a  club.  Less 
frequently  he  is  shown  walking  with  bow  held  out  and  club 
raised  (PI.  V,  3,  24).  Of  his  labors  appear  the  contest  with 
the  Nemean  lion  (PI.  V,  10,  20)  or  the  Lernean  hydra  or  water 
dragon,  carrying  away  the  tripod,  fighting  Acheloos  (PI.  IV, 
7),  Kerberos  (Cerberus)  (PI.  V,  9)  or  a  sea-demon  or  leading 
a  horse,  perhaps  one  of  those  of  Diomedes  (PI.  IV,  5).  At  the 
beginning  of  the  fifth  century  he  is  sometimes  pictured  beside 
a  spring,  binding  his  sandal  (PI.  IV,  25)  or  in  some  statuesque 
pose.  Early  Ionic  art  preferred  the  beardless  face,  and  his 
frequent  appearance  unbearded  shows  Ionic  dominance  in  the 
gem-engraver’s  art.  Other  hero  sagas  play  a  small  part.  Kastor 
and  Polydeukes  (Pollux),  Theseus,  Ariadne,  the  Minotaur, 
Odysseus  escaping  under  the  ram  from  the  cave  of  Polyphemos, 
Tityos  pierced  by  the  arrow  (PI.  IV,  2),  Aias  (Ajax)  carrying 
the  dead  Achilleus,  or  Menelaos,  that  of  Patroklos  (PI.  V,  8), 
and  Europe  and  the  bull  (PL  IV,  8?),  are  rare  examples. 

The  cycle  of  demons  and  lower  gods  is  more  fully  rep¬ 
resented.  There  is  a  demon  the  upper  part  of  whose  body  is 
that  of  a  lion  (PI.  IV,  15),  apparently  some  destructive  or 
death-dealing  power,  which  shows  Mycenaean  influence  or, 
perhaps,  Eastern.  Also  there  are  bull-headed  demons  with  or 
without  wings  (PI.  V,  6),  a  double  bull-headed  demon  holding 
two  serpents,  a  demon  with  an  ass’s  head,  a  winged  demon 
with  a  rooster’s  tail  instead  of  legs,  probably  a  spirit  of  lewd¬ 
ness,  and  a  winged  demon  wearing  a  cuirass  who  is  running 
and  holding  two  snakes,  doubtless  a  demon  of  fear.  The 
Gorgon  is  found  as  a  controller  of  animals  (PI.  V,  10),  and 
winged  horse-bodied  demons  with  Gorgon  faces  (PI.  V,  22) 
may  be  drawn  from  the  legend  of  the  amours  of  the  wind-god, 
Zephyros,  under  the  form  of  a  horse,  with  the  harpies.  It  does 
not  seem  to  me  that  Furtwangler’s  identification  of  the  winged 
Seilenos  demon  that  has  a  lion’s  hind  quarters  joined  to  him, 


SUBJECTS 


41 


centaur-like,  (PI.  V,  12)  with  the  Phoenician  god,  Besa,  is 
well  established  or  that  the  Seilenos-centaur  fighting  a  lion  has 
a  kindred  meaning,  though  there  is,  doubtless,  Phoenician  in¬ 
fluence  shown  in  gems  of  these  types.  The  centaur  with 
human  forelegs  carrying  off  a  nymph  is  purely  Ionic  (PL  V, 
4).  Medousa  appears  often  (PI.  V,  10),  once  as  a  Medousa- 
centaur  (PI.  V,  22),  and  Seilenos  was  a  great  favorite  as  a 
luck-bringing  demon  (PI.  IV,  1;  V,  1,  23).  Hence  the  faces 
on  these  monsters  are  often  of  the  Seilenos  type,  broad,  beard¬ 
ed  and  with  horses’  ears  (PL  V,  4,  12).  Sometimes  he  has  a 
tail,  sometimes  hoofs,  and  a  rooster,  as  an  emblem  of  lewdness, 
is  occasionally  figured  along  with  his  other  attributes.  Pictures 
of  him  carrying  off  a  nymph  suggest  the  same  idea.  On  one 
gem  he  drives  a  chariot  to  which  lions  are  yoked.  Seirens 
are  shown,  often  with  human  arms  in  addition  to  their  wings, 
as  in  the  Ionic  type  (Pl.  V,  5).  These,  sometimes,  hold  a 
mirror  and  are  adorned  with  a  necklace  or  a  hood.  The  wing¬ 
ed  Nike  bears  a  wreath,  a  bough  or  a  flower  (Pl.  V,  7).  Some¬ 
times  she  has  winged  feet  and  there  are  pictures  that  seem 
rather  to  suggest  some  sort  of  demonic  offshoot  of  the  Nike  type. 
The  flying  type  of  Eros  was  popular  in  the  first  half  of  the 
fifth  century  and  on  one  gem  which  is  in  the  Metropolitan 
Museum,  New  York,  he  is  probably  shown  carrying  a  maiden 
with  a  lyre  (Pl.  V,  21).  It  would  be  interesting  to  fancy  such 
a  gem  the  seal  of  Sappho  or  some  sister  poetess.  Demonic 
animal  types  were  also  favored.  The  Sphinx,  emblem  of 
wisdom  and  power,  is  common  (PL  IV,  16;  V,  14)  and  the 
griffin  less  so.  Each  is  sometimes  shown  with  a  victim.  The 
winged  lion  and  winged  bull  were  taken  from  Persian  art  and 
the  winged  sow  is  found.  Besides  Tritons  (Pl.  V,  18)  and 
hippokamps,  there  are  also  winged  sea-monsters  and  all  sorts 
of  animal  forms  fantastically  mixed,  not  unlike  the  sympleg- 
mata  or  grylli  popular  at  a  much  later  period  in  Rome.  Some¬ 
times  these  are  posed  in  a  sort  of  heraldic  arrangement. 

Natural  animal  forms  were  common  subjects:  lions  (PL 

IV,  3a),  boars,  sows,  rams,  bulls,  bucks  (Pl.  V,  13),  eagles  (PL 

V,  13?),  roosters,  horses,  a  cow  with  a  calf  (Pl.  IV,  10),  and  a 


42 


ARCHAIC  PERIOD 


lion  tearing  a  boar,  bull  or  deer  are  all  found  (PL  IV,  13,  22; 
V,  25).  The  dung-beetle  is  pictured  and  may  have  been  sup¬ 
posed  to  have  some  healing  efficacy. 

Human  figures  having  no  special  significance  were  popular. 
As  I  have  said,  these  are  often  kneeling  (PL  IV,  12).  Some¬ 
times  they  carry  objects:  flowers,  beakers,  vases  or  animals, 
perhaps  as  offerings.  Sometimes  they  are  archers  (Pl.  IV,  20), 
sometimes  warriors  with  spear  and  shield  (PL  IV,  4,  23)  or  in 
chariots,  shown  either  full  front  (PL  IV,  3b)  or  in  profile 
(PL  V,  11).  Toward  the  end  of  the  period  youthful  warriors 
are  very  common,  often  bending  to  pick  up  their  arms  or 
mounted  (PL  V,  19),  dismounting  or  leading  a  horse  (Pl.  V, 
11) ;  also  wounded  warriors,  hunters  with  dogs,  athletes 
(PL  V,  16),  squatting  figures  of  negro  slaves  (Pl.  IV,  14)  and 
on  one  gem  a  boy  riding  a  dog.  Human  heads,  usually  helmet- 
ed,  occur,  but  have  no  portrait  significance  at  this  time  (Pl. 
IV,  9,  11).  It  is  rarely  that  indecent  motives  are  found. 

As  may  be  seen,  the  scope  of  Archaic  subjects  is,  after  all, 
pretty  large,  when  we  consider  how  few  of  these  gems,  com¬ 
paratively  speaking,  have  been  discovered,  and  the  types  we 
have  mentioned  must  be  taken,  not  as  excluding  others,  but 
as  indicating  the  trend  so  that  a  professedly  Archaic  gem  that 
transgressed  violently  the  spirit  of  the  art  of  the  time  could 
be  placed  pretty  positively  among  the  forgeries  to  which  Dr. 
Furtwangler  alludes  in  the  letter  quoted  from  on  page  32.  Pri¬ 
marily  there  is  a  distinct  joy  in  art  shown  through  all  this 
work  and  where  the  subjects  have  to  do  with  deities  and 
higher  powers,  as  is  inevitable  when  the  luck-bringing  element 
is  sought  after,  we  find  nothing  of  the  sacerdotal  and  theo¬ 
logical  inspiration  that  influenced  the  Asiatics,  and  next  to 
nothing  of  the  cult  types  of  the  Mycensean  Period.  The  Ionic 
race  and  its  freedom  of  thought  had  come  to  the  front,  as  the 
earlier  dark  ages  with  their  stiffness  and  lack  of  imagination 
showed  a  Doric  pre-eminence.  This  Ionic  influence  was  the 
keynote  of  the  Greek  revival. 

Inscriptions. — Few  inscriptions  have  been  found  on  the 
gems  of  this  period.  One  that  reads  “I  am  the  seal  of  Thyrsis ; 


ARTISTS 


43 


open  me  not”  is  the  most  pretentious.  This  inscription  occupies 
most  of  the  field  of  the  gem,  a  dolphin  being  pictured  at  one 
side.  Others  are  the  names  of  owners  in  the  nominative  case 
or  one  or  two  initial  letters  of  their  names.  A  picture  of 
Kastor  and  Polydeukes  as  boys  playing  with  knuckle-bones,  in¬ 
scribed,  Aioanopoi,  is  a  rare  example  of  a  descriptive  inscrip¬ 
tion  (PI.  VIII,  2),  though  it  probably  belongs  after  the  transi¬ 
tion  period.  Together  with  these  we  have  several  authentic 
artists’  signatures. 

Artists. — Of  the  artists  of  this  period  we  know  in  litera¬ 
ture  of  Mnesarchos  of  Samos,  the  father  of  Pythagoras,  whose 
date  was  early  in  the  sixth  century.  In  this  connection  it  is 
interesting  to  note  that  Diogenes  Laertius  tells  us  the  Pytha¬ 
goreans  were  forbidden  to  wear  the  picture  of  a  god  on  their 
rings,  as  being  a  degradation  of  a  divine  image.  Also  there 
was  Theodoros  of  Samos  (560-522  B.  C.)  who  engraved  the 
famous  gem  of  Polykrates,  tyrant  of  Samos,  which,  as  the 
story  goes,  he  was  advised  by  his  ally,  Amasis,  king  of  Egypt, 
to  cast  into  the  sea,  as  his  most  valued  possession,  lest  his 
continued  good  fortune  should  inspire  the  envy  of  the  gods  to 
visit  upon  him  some  greater  evil.  Its  recovery  from  the  belly 
of  a  fish  and  its  owner’s  final  capture  and  execution  by  Oroites, 
the  Persian  satrap  of  Lydia,  make  a  fitting  climax  to  the  tale. 
There  are  many  conflicting  descriptions  of  this  stone.  Hero- 
dotos,  Pausanias,  Dionysius  of  Halicarnassus  and  Suidas  all 
say  it  was  an  emerald  (smaragdos),  which  Furtwangler  thinks 
probable,  in  view  of  the  existence  of  a  Phoenician  engraved 
emerald  of  the  same  period.  The  use  of  that  name,  however, 
does  not  necessarily  imply  that  the  gem  was  our  emerald, 
since  the  ancient  “smaragdos”  was  used  in  a  much  broader  sense 
and  included  many  other  green  stones.  Clemens  Alexandrinus 
goes  further  and  says  that  the  device  was  a  lyre,  and  King  tells 
of  a  fine  emerald  beautifully  engraved  with  a  lyre  above  which 
hover  three  bees  or  cicadas,  which  was  said  to  have  been  dug 
up  at  Aricia  and  which  antiquaries  at  Rome  hailed  as  the 
legendary  signet.  It  is  safe  to  guess  that  this  gem  was  a  ring- 
stone  and  Graeco-Roman,  but  very  probably  both  the  material 


44 


ARCHAIC  PERIOD 


and  the  device  may  have  been  suggested  to  its  owner  by  the 
old  story,  and  the  lyre,  as  an  attribute  of  Apollo,  was  always 
a  favored  subject  on  gems.  Pliny’s  story  that  the  stone,  an 
unengraved  sardonyx,  was  owned  by  Augustus  and  deposited 
by  him  in  the  temple  of  Concord,  is,  doubtless,  a  pure  fiction 
in  which  Pliny  himself  seems  to  place  little  belief,  while  Dr. 
Benndorf’s  assumption,  drawn  from  his  reading  of  Pliny,  that 
the  device  was  quadriga  is  not  very  convincing.  The  name  of 
Syries,  found  with  the  word  gjroiqoe  on  a  clear  green,  half 
translucent  steatite  gem  of  this  period  with  a  Seilenos  mask 
instead  of  the  beetle-back  (PI.  V,  2),  and  that  of  Epimenes, 
written  in  Ionic  style:  EPi/^HNE^  ErfilE  (e7toiei),  on  a  chal¬ 
cedony  scaraboid  indicate  that  these  were  artists’  signatures. 
Furtwangler  also  suspects  several  other  names,  such  as  Semon 
on  a  bluish  black  and  white  spotted  scarab  (PI.  IV,  19),  to  be 
those  of  the  gem-cutters  because  they  are  in  the  genitive  and 
written  in  small  characters  on  well  engraved  gems,  but  I 
cannot  feel  his  reasoning  is  convincing  for  supplying  the 
word  epyov  (work)  instead  of  op^ia  (sign  or  signet)  in  the 
inscriptions.  This  is  a  subject  I  will  reserve  for  fuller  discus¬ 
sion  in  the  next  chapter. 

GREEK  SCARABS  FOR  THE  ETRUSCAN  MARKET 

At  this  point  it  may  be  well  to  refer  to  a  small  class  of 
Greek  scarabs  made  for  the  Etruscans.  These  are  not  always 
readily  distinguishable  from  the  Etruscan  product,  though  the 
character  of  the  work  on  the  beetle  and  the  unornamented  base 
will  usually  enable  us  to  place  them.  All  early  Archaic  scarabs 
found  in  Etruria  may  be  safely  regarded  as  Greek  importa¬ 
tions.  The  Etruscan  scarabs  begin  with  the  later  Archaic 
style,  and  are  very  close  to  the  Greek.  Generally  speaking, 
the  Greeks  put  little  or  no  polish  in  the  intaglio.  They  work¬ 
ed  out  the  beetle  rather  carelessly  and  left  the  line  around 
the  base  unornamented,  while  the  Etruscans  gave  their  great¬ 
est  care  and  skill  to  cutting  and  elaborating  the  beetle,  even 
when  the  intaglio  was  poorly  done,  and  decorated  the  base 


PHOENICIAN  AND  CARTHAGINIAN  SCARABS  45 


line  with  a  border  of  some  kind.  It  was  not  long,  however, 
before  the  Etruscans  learned  to  do  all  their  own  work  of  this 
kind,  and  the  style  of  such  Greek  gem-cutters  as  may  have 
settled  there  absorbed  the  local  characteristics  and  became 
thoroughly  Etruscanized.  This  took  place  in  the  early  part 
of  the  fifth  century  B.  C. 

PHOENICIAN  AND  CARTHAGINIAN  SCARABS 

Here,  too,  we  must  consider  a  class  of  Phoenician  scarabs, 
most  of  the  examples  of  which  were  found  in  Cyprus  and 
Sardinia  and  which,  as  does  most  Phoenician  art,  reflects  out¬ 
side  influences.  The  subjects  show  a  combination  of  Assyrian, 
Egyptian  and  Greek  ideas,  but  the  execution  and  style  have  a 
strongly  Greek  character.  This  style,  however,  is  easily  dis¬ 
tinguished  by  a  certain  dryness,  stiffness  and  flatness  quite 
different  from  the  round,  fresh,  plastic  and  free  order  of  pure 
Greek  work.  Perspective  is  either  unattempted  or  feeble. 
Many  of  them  show  considerable  beauty  and  delicacy  but  even 
the  best  have  their  foreign  characteristics.  Clothing,  animals’ 
skins,  and  hair  are  often  indicated  by  parallel  or  crossed  lines. 

They  begin  in  the  sixth  century  and  reflect  the  severe 
Greek  style  which,  with  Asiatic  conservativeness,  held  on  even 
into  the  fourth.  Only  from  the  middle  of  the  fourth  to  the 
middle  of  the  third  century  do  we  find  their  pictures  worked 
out  in  the  free  Greek  style.  The  artists  seem  to  have  been 
Hellenized  Carthaginians  or  Phcenicianized  Greeks. 

Nearly  all  these  gems  are  scarabs  and  the  favorite  stone 
was  a  green — sometimes  a  blackish — jasper,  though  the  colored 
quartzes,  especially  carnelian  and  chalcedony,  also  occur,  and 
these  latter  show,  generally,  a  better  type  of  workmanship. 
There  are  also  many  in  a  softer  greenish  serpentine  and  a  few 
glass  pastes.  Most  of  them  have  a  border  either  of  a  single  line 
or  the  cable  type  and  the  exergue  beneath  the  picture  is  very 
commonly  filled  in  with  criss-cross  lines. 

Subjects. — Bel,  probably  Bel-Khamon,  with  a  censer  or 
a  winged  Sun-disc,  appears  constantly  on  them.  Sometimes  he 


46 


ARCHAIC  PERIOD 


sits  enthroned  (PI.  VI,  9)  or  is  pictured  conquering  an  evil 
demon  or  a  lion,  though  in  these  cases  the  militant  figure 
may  represent  some  king  (PL  VI,  5).  When  attacking  the 
demon  he  usually  swings  an  ax  of  Egypto-Syrian  form,  and  the 
demon  is  apt  to  have  a  flat  nose  and  is  sometimes  covered  with 
hair  like  rarer  representations  of  the  Greek  Seilenos.  The 
Egyptian  god,  Besa  (PL  VI,  4,  8, 10, 12),  is  also  very  common  as 
a  powerful,  magic-working  demon,  who  drives  off  evil,  heals 
the  sick,  protects  women,  ministers  in  childbirth  and  guards 
children.  His  power  is  often  symbolized  by  his  holding  out 
animals  or  serpents  in  one  or  both  hands  (Pl.  VI,  8,  10),  some¬ 
times  as  if  strangling  them,  sometimes  by  the  hind  legs.  His 
figure  shows  the  Egyptian  type,  with  crooked  dwarf’s  legs  and 
he  is  sometimes  winged  (PL  VI,  8).  A  more  definitely  Phoeni- 
cianized  type  wears  a  garment  open  in  front  in  the  Syrian 
style  and  showing  one  well  formed  leg  (Pl.  VI,  10).  Some¬ 
times  he  wears  an  animal’s  skin  on  his  shoulders  and  often  a 
crown  of  feathers  ( Pl.  VI,  4,  8, 10 ) .  These  styles  of  the  Phoeni¬ 
cian  Besa  always  hold  animals,  generally  four  of  them,  and  a 
second  set  of  Phoenicianized  pictures  show  him  in  profile,  with 
the  dwarf  legs  and  a  lion’s  skin,  still  conquering  some  beast 
or  beasts  (PL  VI,  4,  12).  The  head  is  bald  and  the  nose  flat 
but  the  face  is  less  grotesque  and  brutal  than  in  Egypt;  more 
like  that  of  the  Greek  Seilenos,  who  also  appears  in  Besaesque 
type  (Pl.  VI,  11).  Sometimes  Besa  is  pictured  running,  either 
with  the  bent  knee  action  or  more  naturally  (Pl.  VI,  8). 

Though  Besa  is  earlier  than  Herakles,  the  representations 
of  the  two  deities  seem  to  have  had  some  influence  on  each 
other.  Where  the  former  wears  a  lion  skin  or  where,  as  on  one 
scarab,  he  is  shown  riding  a  lion  full  front,  the  idea  is  prob¬ 
ably  borrowed.  As  for  Seilenos,  the  influence  is  even  more 
marked,  until,  at  last,  the  Besa  type  yields  entirely,  save  for 
the  slight  reflex  influence  it  exerted  (Pl.  VI,  11).  The  masks 
of  both  Besa  and  Seilenos  were  considered  most  efficient  as 
talismans  and  were  often  worked  into  other  subject  designs 
(Pl.  VI,  7).  The  Besa  mask  is  also  shown  combined  with  that 
of  the  demon,  Medousa,  a  combination  whereby  the  owner 


SUBJECTS 


47 


sought  to  invoke  the  favoring  influence  of  both  ( See  PI.  VI,  6 ) . 
Occasionally  only  the  upper  half  of  the  god’s  body  is  pictured. 

Triton-like  creatures,  sometimes  with  cup  and  wreath, 
perhaps  Dagons,  perhaps  derived  from  Greek  conceptions,  are 
found  on  these  scarabs,  and  also  a  sea-god  not  unlike  Poseidon, 
holding  a  trident  and  a  fish  or  else  seated  on  a  fish  or  a  sea¬ 
horse.  He  is  often  beardless,  as  is  Poseidon  in  Archaic  Greek 
art.  Also  there  are  demons  (PI.  VI,  3),  often  winged  demons 
of  the  flying  Eros  type,  seirens  like  those  the  Greeks  pictured, 
and  a  representation  of  the  killing  of  the  tortoise  sacred  to 
Astarte.  Herakles,  in  whom  the  Carthaginians  saw  their 
national  divinity,  Melkart,  appears  only  in  the  older  style. 

Besides  these  there  are  many  examples  of  warriors  ( PI.  VI, 
7),  hunters,  shepherds,  kneeling  men,  men  with  ploughs,  a  few 
animals  (PI.  VI,  13,  14),  sometimes,  probably,  of  astronomical 
significance,  heads  of  negroes  (PI.  VI,  6)  or  helmeted  heads, 
as  in  Greek  art,  some  purely  Carthaginian  heads,  done  more 
or  less  in  Greek  style,  and  combinations  of  several  heads  or 
masks  (PI.  VI,  6)  or  forms,  less  tastefully  conceived  than  the 
later  Roman  symplegmata  or  grylli  but  evidently  embodying 
the  same  amulet  or  talismanic  idea. 


CHAPTER  III 


THE  GEMS  OF  THE  BEST  PERIOD  (480—400  B.  C.)  AND 
OF  THE  PERIOD  OF  THE  FINISHED  STYLES 
(400—300  B.  C.) 

GREEK-PERSIAN  GEMS 


Before  taking  up  the  consideration  of  the  pure  Greek 
work  of  these  periods  we  should  glance  aside  at  a  class  of  what 
Dr.  Furtwangler  calls  Greek-Persian  gems:  gems  done  by 
Greek  artists  for  Persians’  use.  The  Persians  themselves  could 
not  have  done  such  work.  It  is  quite  foreign  to  their  methods. 
No  scarabs  are  found  among  these  and  only  a  very  few  are 
cylinders.  Some  are  of  hemispherical  shape,  occasionally  cut 
with  facets  like  the  later  Babylonian  signets. 
A  modified  prism,  of  varying  proportions  but 
cut,  usually,  as  in  Fig.  22,  sometimes  pictur- 
Fig.  22.  ed  only  on  the  base,  sometimes,  also,  on  all 
its  five  upper  surfaces,  was  an  occasional  form,  but  the  great 
majority  of  the  stones  are  scaraboids  of  unusual  size  and  thick¬ 
ness  (Fig.  18).  Rarely  both  sides  of  the  scaraboid  were  en¬ 
graved;  generally  only  the  base.  All  the  gems  were  pierced 
through  the  major  axis  for  suspension  from  wrist  or  neck. 

Materials. — The  material  is  nearly  always  a  blue  chalce¬ 
dony  (sapphirine)  which,  judging  by  its  prevalence,  must 
have  had  a  magic-working  repute  among  Orientals.  Rarely 
we  find  rock-crystal,  red-brown  jasper,  brown  cloudy  chalce¬ 
dony,  jasper  and  chalcedony  mixed,  agate,  steatite,  etc.,  in 
which  case  the  gem  is  apt  to  have  been  made  in  Greece  itself. 
Glass  pastes  also  appear,  especially  a  dark  blue,  a  greenish 
white  and  a  pure  translucent  white. 

48 


TECHNIQUE  AND  SUBJECTS 


43 


Technique. — The  workmanship  is  sometimes  careless  but 
the  design  is,  for  the  most  part,  treated  in  the  broad,  easy 
manner  characteristic  of  the  Greek  gems  of  the  period.  Only 
among  the  earliest,  say  before  450  B.  C.,  is  the  space  carefully 
filled  and  the  treatment  formal  and  precise.  Generally  they 
show  the  picture  with  an  open  back-ground,  since  the  advancing 
Greek  art  sense  realized  it  should  be  shown  pictorially,  as 
opposed  to  the  earlier  and  purely  decorative  idea.  Naturally 
the  border  is  omitted.  These  gems  may  be  dated,  generally, 
from  450  to  350  B.  C. 

Subjects. — Only  Persian  subjects  were  used,  for,  though 
the  intercourse  between  Greece  and  Persia  was  then  free,  the 
Persian  of  the  period,  while  recognizing  Greek  artistic  skill,  held 
himself  stiff  against  the  Greek  spirit.  Naturally  the  best  work¬ 
men  understood  how  to  follow  Persian  ideas  which  they  execut¬ 
ed  in  Greek  style.  Later,  the  Persians,  especially  those  not 
connected  with  court  circles,  the  merchant  class  whose  dealings 
with  Greece  were  closer,  yielded  more  and  more  to  Greek 
influence. 

These  subjects,  then,  are  Oriental  symbolic  religious  types, 
suggest  the  courage  and  power  of  Persian  kings  or,  and  this 
is  much  more  common,  show  pictures  from  Persian  life.  The 
costumes  are  correct  and  characteristic.  The  demonic  element 
is  found  only  in  mixed  animal  forms,  such  as  the  horned  lion- 
griffin  with  eagle’s  hind  legs  (PI.  VI,  17),  bearded  sphinxes, 
occasionally  with  a  crown  or  horns,  seirens,  and  the  winged 
bull,  sometimes  with  a  man’s  head.  There  are  fights  between 
Greeks  and  Persians  (PI.  VI,  15),  the  latter  nearly  always 
mounted,  also  Persians  with  Greek  captives.  Battles  between 
Persians  never  appear.  Next  to  battle  scenes,  hunts  are  most 
common  (PI.  VI,  18a,  21).  In  most  of  these  there  is  apt  to  be 
a  good  deal  of  action  but  not  much  beauty  such  as  is  found  on 
the  best  purely  Greek  gems.  The  horses,  for  here,  too,  the 
hunter  is  generally  mounted,  always  have  saddles  and  usually 
a  knot  in  the  tail  ( PI.  VI,  15,  21 ) ;  dogs  are  often  included,  and 
the  quarry  is  sometimes,  though  rarely,  a  demonic  beast. 
Single  animal  pictures  are  lively  and  truthful  on  the  later 


50 


BEST  PERIOD 


gems  of  this  series  and  include  zebras,  lions,  boars  (PI.  VI,  16), 
mountain  goats,  foxes  (PL  VI,  18b),  wolves,  deer  (PI.  VI,  20), 
mice,  dogs  (PI.  VI,  18b),  storks,  swans,  quail,  hawks  (PI.  VI, 
18b),  grasshoppers  (PL VI,  18b),  and  the  bear  (Pl. VI,  18b)  and 
hyena,  the  former  seldom  and  the  latter  never  shown  in  purely 
Greek  work.  Groups  of  animals  are  very  rare.  Where  female 
figures,  unknown  in  pure  Persian  art,  are  found,  as  they  often 
are,  on  these  stones,  the  hair  is  usually  in  a  long  braid-like 
arrangement  with  ornaments  (PL  VI,  22),  and  the  artists 
follow  the  Persian  costume  of  this  time.  Beware  of  a  gem 
with  a  Persian  woman  wearing  a  cap  or  bracelets.  The  breasts 
and  hips  are  generally  rather  prominent  (Pl.  VI,  22),  with 
almost  a  suggestion  of  the  Mycenaean  female  types. 

GREEK  GEMS 

Returning,  now,  to  the  pure  Greek  gems  of  what  we  may 
call  the  Best  Period,  let  us  say  from  480  to  400  B.  C.,  the 
number  of  examples  is  comparatively  small.  They  were  copied 
later  but  to  the  eye  of  the  expert  the  divergence,  such,  for 
instance,  as  a  combination  of  drill  work  with  sharply  cut  lines ; 
a  thing  abhorred  by  Dexamenos  and  his  contemporaries,  is 
generally  appreciable.  That  but  few  gems  of  this  time  have 
been  found  may  be  in  part  explained  by  the  fact  that  the  export 
trade  had  practically  vanished,  since,  by  about  500  B.  C.,  the 
Etruscans  had  begun  to  do  their  own  gem-cutting,  while,  as 
we  have  seen,  the  Eastern  market  wanted  only  work  of  its 
own  kind. 

Some  stones,  akin  to  the  Greek-Persian  gems,  mostly  large, 
thick  chalcedony  scaraboids  with  an  open  background,  no 
border  and  a  picture  showing  Eastern  influence,  may  be  at¬ 
tributed  to  the  Asiatic  colonies.  They  have  a  soft,  broad, 
picturesque  method,  give  the  figure  as  if  from  a  distance  and 
do  not  indulge  in  much  detail,  but  they  are  apt  to  lack  care 
and  exactness.  PL  VIII,  20  suggests  this  school. 

The  work  of  the  Attic  school  shows  much  higher  art  and 
more  subtle  accuracy.  The  pure,  quiet  beauty  of  the  Pheidian 


SHAPES 


51 


ideals  appears  distinctly  in  some;  in  fact  many  of  the  gems 
of  this  epoch  are  undoubtedly  copied  from  statues,  the  pedestal, 
even,  being  indicated,  while  others  seem  possibly  to  have  been 
inspired  by  the  great  Athenian  painters  of  the  period.  Also 
we  find  these  influences  in  Magna  Grsecia  and  Sicily  after  the 
middle  of  the  fifth  century  B.  C.  Much  of  the  Italian  Greek 
work  is  very  fine  and  difficult  or  impossible  to  distinguish  from 
that  of  Greece  proper,  except  where,  as  in  the  case  of  PL  X,  3, 
the  subject  suggests  the  provenance. 

The  scarab  falls  into  the  background,  though  in  the 
Western  Grecian  world  it  held  on  pretty  well  through  the  free 
style  of  the  fifth  century.  The  Asiatic  Greeks  did  not  use  it  at 
all.  Occasionally,  as  before,  other  forms  in  relief,  such  as  a 
crouching  lion,  are  substituted  for  the  beetle,  but  the  growing 
style  is  the  scaraboid  which  took  shape  in  the  East  and  pushed 
gradually  westward  through  the  Greek  world.  The  Asiatic 
and  Island  Greek  examples  are,  as  I  have  said,  like  the  Greek- 
Persian  scaraboids,  of  considerable  size  and  thickness,  and 
the  curvature  of  the  back  is  apt  to  be  pronounced.  The 
ring-stone  form  that  was  to  control  in  the  following  epoch 
and  which  had  even  begun  to  be  foreshadowed  in  the  Archaic 
Period,  is  evidenced  more  and  more  definitely  by  occasional  pic¬ 
tures  on  both  sides  of  the  stone  and  finally  on  the  convex 
side  alone.  In  these  gems  the  convexity  was  made  flatter 
and  the  walls  of  the  scaraboid  were  gradually  lowered.  Sev¬ 
eral,  dated  about  Alexander’s  time,  show  the  convex  face  and 
the  back  almost  joining.  The  advantages  of  the  small  ring- 
stone  with  a  fixed  setting  over  the  clumsy  scaraboid  that,  set 
in  a  swivel,  dangled  from  neck  or  wrist,  were  obvious,  and 
the  growth  of  the  idea  was  steady.  Stones  originally  pierced 
for  suspension  are  found  set  solid  in  rings  of  about  400  B.  G. 
and  simple  unpierced  ring-stones  are  not  rare  even  by  the  end 
of  the  fifth  century  (PI.  X,  16).  It  is  hard,  however,  to  distin¬ 
guish  them  from  those  of  a  later  date  except  it  be  by  some 
circumstance  of  the  discovery.  There  are  few  early  examples 
of  flat  ring-stones  and  none  that  can  be  dated  much  before 
400  B.  C.  After  that  date  the  ring-stone  forms  begin  to  out- 


52 


BEST  PERIOD 


number  the  scaraboids.  Cylinders  appear  occasionally  in 
somewhat  modified  form ;  that  is,  from  450  to  400  B.  C.  there 
are  some  Greek  cylinders  with  one  side  flattened  and  often 
broader  in  the  middle  with  the  picture  cut  on  the  flat  surface 
(PI.  VIII,  5, 19) ;  also  cylindricals  with  four  flat  sides,  engraved 
on  one  or  all  of  these  (PI.  X,  15),  the  square-cornered  stones 
with  faceted  tops  and  the  picture  on  the  base  alone  (PI.  VIII, 
4)  and,  rarely,  among  Asiatic  Greeks  where  the  Persian  in¬ 
fluence  reached,  the  conical  (PL  VII,  3)  and  hemispherical 
shapes.  As  with  the  Greek-Persian,  there  is  no  border 
in  the  Ionic  gems  save  in  a  few  cases  of  the  milled,  dotted 
or  line  border  taken  from  the  scarabs  and  found  even  in  scara¬ 
boids  of  the  free  style.  After  400  B.  C.,  however,  it  is  very 
rare. 

Materials. — Among  the  materials  used,  chalcedony  com¬ 
pletely  dominated,  especially  in  Asia  Minor  and  the  islands. 
Next  common  was  carnelian  and,  next,  banded  agate,  sardonyx 
usually  cut  across  the  layers  as  in  the  preceding  period,  and 
rock-crystal.  Sard  and  lapis  lazuli  were  rare  but  a  mottled 
jasper  or  variegated  jasper  and  chalcedony  was  fashionable 
among  the  better  artists.  There  were  also  some  scaraboids 
carelessly  cut  in  a  soft  black  stone.  Green  jaspers  and  ame¬ 
thysts  have  not  been  found  among  these  gems.  Glass  pastes, 
however,  were  abundant,  usually  white  or  greenish  white, 
translucent  and  nearly  always  in  the  form  of  the  scaraboid. 
Only  one  or  two  other  colors  have  been  found,  notably  a  dark 
blue,  though  the  Parthenon  treasury  lists  refer  to  glass  seals 
of  two  and  even  seven  colors. 

Technique. — With  reference  to  the  technique,  Furtwan- 
gler  divides  the  time  between  480  and  300  B.  C.  into  three 
periods :  First,  until  450,  when  the  style,  as  a  rule,  still  showed 
some  severe  elements  (PI.  VII,  2,  13,  16;  VIII,  5,  12,  13,  14, 
22) ;  second,  450  to  400,  when  is  found  that  perfect  freedom 
united  with  breadth  and  largeness  of  conception  which  goes  to 
make  up  the  ideal  in  engraved  gems — the  best  the  world  has 
ever  seen  (PI.  VII,  1,  4,  5,  6,  9,  11,  15,  17;  VIII,  9,  15,  16,  17, 
19) ;  third,  from  400  to  300  B.  O.,  when,  while  the  technical 


DATINGS 


53 


perfection  of  style  was  still  maintained,  the  gems  were  some¬ 
what  inferior  in  conception,  breadth,  and  pure  beauty  (See 
plates  IX  and  X). 

Broad  and  blunt  cutting  instruments  were  in  favor 
through  all  this  time  and  the  result  was  round,  soft,  plastic 
effects.  The  drill  was  out  of  fashion,  though  used  occasionally, 
but  they  avoided  especially  the  contrast  between  the  hole  and 
the  line.  Long,  broad  strokes  are  characteristic,  especially 
of  the  Ionic  work.  The  engraving  is  either  unpolished  or  else 
very  slightly  or  only  on  the  broader  surfaces,  save  in  fine  gems, 
where  a  high  polish  occurs  oftener  as  the  period  advances. 

Foreshortening  was  attempted,  unsuccessfully  at  first, 
but,  later,  very  satisfactorily  (PI.  VII,  15),  and  seated  figures 
are  common.  Conventionalized  Archaic  poses  are  replaced  by 
natural  ones. 

Casual  examination  of  and  deduction  from  the  pages  of 
writers  on  the  subject  tend  to  create  an  impression  that  high 
artistic  merit  was  a  universal  sign  manual  of  this  period, 
but  very  little  thought  must  lead  to  an  assurance  that  this  is 
impossible.  The  best  work  of  a  cycle  when  art  instincts  and 
skill  are  at  their  highest  is  always  the  most  characteristic, 
and  this  consideration,  together  with  the  natural  appreciation 
of  connoisseurs  for  the  best,  combines  to  eliminate  much 
study  or  consideration  of  mediocre  and  bad  work.  That 
inferior  craftsmen  working  for  poor  patrons  must  have  exist¬ 
ed  at  all  times  is  obvious,  and  the  much  greater  difficulty  of 
dating  commonplace  specimens  reinforces  the  accepted  con¬ 
clusion.  I  have  no  doubt  whatever  that  many  gems  which 
constitute  the  worst  output  of  good  periods  stand  classed  with 
the  characteristic  work  of  poor  ones,  and  there  is  a  chance 
that  much  of  it  will  always  remain  so,  as  being  practically  in¬ 
distinguishable.  This  must  be  constantly  borne  in  mind  as 
a  basis  for  careful  study,  slowness  to  generalize  too  violently 
and,  often,  ultimate  doubt.  The  shapes  of  the  stones  are,  of 
course,  the  initial  guide,  but  when  able  authorities  date  many 
ring-stones  in  a  period  when  the  scaraboid  was  characteristic, 
because  the  intaglios  on  these  ring-stones  show  a  kindred 


54 


BEST  PERIOD 


quality  and  style,  it  is  well  to  remember  that  such  theorizing 
should  be  indulged  in  with  qualifications.  On  the  one  hand 
imitations  of  one  period  are  apt  to  persist  and,  on  the  other, 
Furtwangler’s  remark  that  it  is  hard  to  distinguish  ring-stones 
of  this  period  from  those  of  a  later  suggests  that  the  ring- 
stone  may  have  been  much  more  common  in  the  scaraboid 
epoch  than  is  generally  admitted  by  experts  who  attribute 
to  it  only  those  whose  fine  workmanship  seems,  from  their 
standpoint,  to  demand  such  attribution.  That  they  steadily  in¬ 
creased  in  numbers  is  made  clear  by  the  ultimate  development. 
In  support  of  this  we  find  several  allusions  in  old  authors, 
notably  where  Aristophanes  refers  to  musicians  as  “Lazy 
long-haired  fellows  with  fingers  covered  with  rings  down  to 
the  nails.”  Gold,  silver,  and  bronze  rings  with  the  seal  cut 
in  the  metal  were,  to  be  sure,  popular  down  to  Alexander’s 
time,  but  the  passage  is  illuminated  by  Pliny’s  account  of  the 
rivalry  of  Ismenias,  the  flute  player,  and  the  contemporary 
musicians,  Dionysiodoros  and  Nikomachos,  in  the  matter  of 
buying  and  displaying  engraved  gems,  a  rivalry  in  which  the 
cost  of  the  articles  played  a  much  higher  part  than  taste  in 
their  selection.  The  date  of  these  gentlemen  seems  to  have 
been  about  the  time  of  the  Peloponnesian  War. 

Of  Ismenias  the  story  is  told  that,  hearing  of  a  smaragdos 
(emerald?)  on  which  was  engraved  a  figure  of  the  sea-nymph, 
Amymone,  and  which  was  for  sale  in  the  Island  of  Cyprus  for 
six  gold  denarii  (about  thirty  dollars),  he  commissioned  a 
friend  to  buy  it  for  him,  and  when  the  latter  by  bargaining 
reduced  the  price  to  four  denarii  the  musician  exclaimed: 
“By  Herakles !  he  has  done  me  a  bad  turn  in  this,  for  the  merit 
of  the  stone  has  been  greatly  impaired  by  this  reduction  in 
price.”  iElian  also  speaks  of  the  gem-engravers  of  Kyrene, 
at  this  time,  as  being  “Wonderful”,  and  states  that  the  poor¬ 
est  citizens  had  signet  rings  worth  ten  minse  (about  one 
hundred  and  fifty  dollars).  These  statements  should  be  read 
together. 

Subjects. — In  the  matter  of  subjects,  as  in  the  matter 
of  technique,  we  may  treat  the  “Best”  and  the  “Finished” 


SUBJECTS 


55 


periods  as  one,  noting  only  the  accentuation  of  the  changing 
tendencies  as  time  advanced.  It  is  characteristic  that  gods, 
heroes  and  demons  give  way  more  and  more  to  purely  human 
subjects;  this,  doubtless,  with  the  growth  of  philosophic 
skepticism,  a  lessening  fear  of  supernatural  terrors  and  a 
disposition  of  mind  less  inclined  to  invoke  or  propitiate  the 
higher  powers.  Only  those  figures  that  lent  themselves  to  the 
dominant  idea  of  beauty  and  poetry  were  favored,  such  as 
Aphrodite,  Eros  and,  we  may  add,  Nike.  The  first  named 
is  relatively  very  common,  in  the  fifth  century  clothed  with  a 
long  tunic,  a  mantle  and  sometimes  a  hood  (PI.  VII,  11,  15). 
In  the  fourth  she  is  generally  naked  to  the  waist  (PI.  VIII,  20 
and  23 — forerunners;  IX,  3,  15)  or  wholly  so,  and  the  figures 
seem  often  to  be  copied  from  statues,  standing,  sometimes, 
beside  a  supporting  column  (PI.  VIII,  20).  Many  of  her  rep¬ 
resentations  are  in  pretty  domestic  scenes  and  poses  (PI.  VII, 
15;  IX,  3). 

Eros  is  often  shown  with  her  (PI.  VII,  11,  15;  IX,  3)  but 
still  more  frequently  pictured  alone  (PI.  VII,  4;  IX,  4).  He 
is  still  a  beautiful  youth  or  half  grown  boy,  for  the  later  Cupid 
type,  the  pudgy  child,  had  not  as  yet  developed.  The  famous 
gem  by  Phrygillos  which  shows  him  beside  an  open  shell,  as 
when  first  born,  is  nearest  to  it  (PI.  VII,  4),  and  he  is  also 
pictured  flying  over  the  sea.  In  the  first  half  of  the  fourth 
century  B.  C.,  he  is  often  bending  a  bow  or  loosing  the  arrow 
(PI.  IX,  4). 

Nike  is  third  in  frequency,  often  driving  a  four-horse 
chariot,  once  sacrificing  an  ox  (See  PI.  XX,  12,  for  the  same 
subject  in  Graeco-Roman  times),  playing  at  dice  or  kneeling 
and  presenting  the  palm  or  the  wreath  of  victory  (PL  IX,  12). 
In  the  earlier  types  she,  too,  is  fully  clothed,  but  in  the  beauti¬ 
ful  pictures  of  the  fourth  century,  where  she  is  seen  crowning 
a  victor  or  raising  a  trophy  (PL  IX,  13),  she  is  half  draped. 

Of  other  greater  gods  Apollo  appears  occasionally  (Pl. 
X,  15c) ;  once  with  Marsyas  (See  PL  XXIV,  13,  for  the  same 
subject  in  the  Graeco-Roman  period ) ,  once  mounted  on  a  horned 
Persian  lion-griffin  and  once  as  Apollo  Kitharaoidos. 


56 


BEST  PERIOD 


Hermes,  binding  his  sandal  or  in  some  other  trivial  pose,  also 
as  a  Herm  (PL  VIII,  15),  such  as  Alkibiades  and  his  friends 
were  accused  of  mutilating,  Athena,  Demeter,  Persephone 
being  carried  off  by  Hades  (PL  VII,  16),  Artemis  (Pl.  VII, 
12)  and  Kastor  and  Polydeukes  (Pollux)  (PL  VIII,  2),  are 
all  rare  and  appear  generally  as  single  figures,  often  as  re¬ 
productions  of  famous  statues  though  there  are  a  few  cult 
suggestions.  Bacchic  motives  are  not  very  common.  The  taste 
was  too  refined  to  admire  the  coarse  Seilenos  types  and  only  a 
few  of  them  are  pictured,  such  as  the  satyr  seizing  a  mainad 
(PL  VIII,  22),  dancing  (PI.  VIII,  18),  or  with  an  amphora 
or  a  wine  skin.  The  dancing  or  raging  Bacchante  is  rather 
more  frequent  (PL  IX,  6,  8),  sometimes  holding  the  hind  part 
of  a  kid  but  always  clothed.  Pan  is  seen  sitting  with  a  bird 
perched  on  his  hand  (PL  VII,  14),  also  the  Hermaphrodite, 
pictured  somewhat  like  Dionysos,  and,  once,  a  queer  looking 
winged  phallic  demon  with  a  thyrsos  and  shepherd’s  crook  or 
pedum,  probably  Priapos.  Tritons  appear  (Pl.  IX,  5),  and 
Nereids  riding  sea-animals  were  among  the  favored  subjects 
and  are  found  first  in  this  epoch. 

Herakles  continues  from  the  Archaic  Period  (PL  VII,  13; 
IX,  1,  9;  X,  17),  but  of  the  labors  only  the  conquest  of  the 
Nemean  Lion  is  at  all  common.  Theseus,  Diomedes,  Odysseus 
(Pl.  IX,  7),  Philoktetes  (Pl.  IX,  1),  Kadmos  (PL  X,  12),  and 
other  heroes  are  found,  though  not  very  commonly,  and  in  the 
early  part  of  the  period  Penelope  was  a  popular  subject,  also 
Danae,  figured  as  a  symbol  of  blessings  bestowed  by  the  gods 
and  with  no  sensual  intent  (PL  VIII,  12). 

That  these  and  other  female  heroic  types  were  favored 
along  with  the  male  figures,  marks  the  general  softening  tend¬ 
ency.  Many  mortal  women  appear  on  the  gems,  clothed,  half 
clothed  or  occasionally  nude  and  engaged  in  trivial  occupations 
(PL  VIII,  5;  X,  11,  19)  or  domestic  duties,  perhaps  playing 
on  some  musical  instrument  or  with  an  animal  (Pl.  X,  14), 
perhaps  meditating  or  unrobing  for  the  bath  like  the  Aphrodite 
pictures  of  a  later  time  (PL  VII,  17;  VIII,  16).  As  Furt- 
wiingler  well  puts  it,  “We  breathe  the  air  surrounding  Aspasia.” 


SUBJECTS 


57 


Also  there  are  pictures  of  children  at  play.  Ideal  female  heads 
are  not  uncommon  (PI.  VIII,  13),  and  there  is  one,  even,  of  a 
negress.  Squatting  negro  slaves  are  still  found  (PI.  VIII,  11). 

Among  the  representations  of  men  the  sandal-binding 
motive  was  most  favored  (PI.  VII,  8),  then  horsemen  (PL  X,  2, 
13),  charioteers,  victors,  athletes  and  warriors  (PI.  X,  9). 
A  youth  playing  a  lyre  is  shown  (PI.  VIII,  17).  Portraits  on 
gems  first  appeared  in  the  fifth  century,  but  we  have  only  two  or 
three  authentic  instances.  In  the  fourth  there  were  more, 
though  they  were  not  at  all  common  (PI.  IX,  2).  We  know 
that  Alexander  the  Great  commanded  that  only  Pyrgoteles 
should  be  allowed  to  cut  his  likeness.  This  idea  of  the  sub¬ 
stitution  of  his  own  picture  for  that  of  some  patron  deity  was 
probably  justified  by  the  young  conqueror  on  the  ground  of 
his  assumption  of  divinity.  Portraits  of  him  were  held,  at  later 
periods,  to  possess  a  talismanic  power;  all  of  which  suggests 
a  motive  for  the  restrictive  edict,  more  powerful,  perhaps,  than 
mere  vanity.  Appuleius  alleges  as  much  when  he  speaks  of  it 
as  “Threatening  that  if  any  other  artist  should  be  discovered 
to  have  put  his  hand  to  the  most  sacred  image  of  the  sovereign, 
the  same  punishment  should  be  inflicted  upon  him  as  was  ap¬ 
pointed  for  sacrilege.”  From  the  many  portraits  of  Alexander 
and  the  ordinary  quality  of  most,  it  is  easy  to  see  that  his  face 
was  a  popular  subject  for  centuries  after  he  and  Pyrgoteles 
and  the  edict  were  dust.  Heads  of  deities  naturally  occur  ( PI. 
VIII,  9). 

Of  demonic  animals  the  griffin  is  most  common  (PI.  VII, 
6;  X,  8),  then  the  Sphinx  (PI.  X,  18),  reversing  the  relations 
of  earlier  times.  The  Chimaira,  centaurs  (PI.  VII,  5)  and 
seirens  also  appear,  as  well  as  a  few  fantastic  combinations 
such  as  a  sphinx-seiren,  a  cicada-seiren  with  griffin’s  head  at 
the  end  of  the  tail,  and  a  serpent  shooting  a  bow.  The  figures 
PI.  VII,  7  and  VIII,  6  belong  to  this  class.  Acheloos,  the  man¬ 
headed  bull,  is  found  as  a  south  Italian  subject  (PI.  X,  3). 

Natural  animals  were  favorite  subjects,  the  lion  (PI.  VII, 
2,  9),  perhaps,  most  so,  and  beautifully  done  though  not  so 
strongly  as  in  the  Archaic  Period  and  less  truthful  and  vivid 


58 


BEST  PERIOD 


than  in  the  Mycenaean.  There  are  also  the  panther,  fox,  lynx, 
wolf,  and  bear.  Deer  (PI.  VII,  6;  X,  2,  8,  16)  and  does  are 
common.  Hunting  scenes  occur  (PL  X,  2,  16),  the  wild  boar 
is  found  attacked  by  dogs,  and  the  sow  with  her  litter,  while 
the  lion  or  griffin  are  often  attacking  other  beasts  (PI.  VII, 
2,  6;  X,  8).  The  horse  has  never  been  better  represented  than 
at  this  time  or  in  more  positions  (PI.  VII,  10;  VIII,  14;  X,  2, 
13),  and  there  are  bulls  (PI.  VIII,  1,  3),  often  butting,  as  on  the 
coins  of  Thourioi  (PI.  IX,  11),  cows  (PI.  X,  7),  dogs  (PI.  X,  14, 
16),  and,  on  one  stone,  probably  Asiatic  Greek,  a  camel.  Of 
birds  the  heron  and  crane  are  commonest  (PI.  VII,  1;  VIII, 
19;  X,  5)  ;  then  the  eagle  (with  Ganymedes,  PI.  X,  6),  goose 
(PI.  X,  16),  swan,  duck,  rooster,  hen  (on  one  gem  the  last 
two  are  shown  in  flagrante  delictu )  and  dove  (PI.  VIII,  20). 
The  insect  types  are  generally  flies  or  grasshoppers  (PI. 
VIII,  4). 

Symbolic  designs  are  rare,  though  there  is  one  of  two 
clasped  hands  (PI.  X,  4)  with  the  motto,  xal  <tu  (Be  thou 
happy).  Of  still  life  there  are  also  few  examples,  such  as  a 
krater  between  two  dolphins,  a  tripod  (PI.  X,  15a,  15b)  or  an 
amphora  (PI.  IX,  14).  Neither  were  obscene  representations 
at  all  popular: — in  fact,  contrary  to  the  notions  of  many 
modern  moralists,  these  are  rare  throughout  all  antiquity  and 
most  of  the  pretended  examples  are  modern  forgeries. 

Furtwiingler  also  calls  attention  to  an  evidently  astro¬ 
logical  picture  of  zodiacal  signs  which  he  dates  fifth  to  fourth 
century  and  cites  as  the  earliest  gem-picture  showing  a 
knowledge  of  the  celestial  globe  (PI.  IX,  10). 

Inscriptions. — During  this  period  there  is  an  increase 
in  the  number  of  gems  bearing  inscriptions.  Nearly  all  of 
these  evidently  have  to  do  with  the  owner  of  the  signet,  being, 
as  before,  either  his  full  name  or  one  or  more  of  its  first  letters. 
One  fifth  century  scaraboid  has  no  picture  but  only  an  ab¬ 
breviated  name,  I^ATOP,  perhaps  for  Isagoras.  Some  few  de¬ 
scribe  the  subject  as  did  the  Etruscans  on  their  scarabs  (PI. 
VIII,  2,  9),  a  few  bear  such  words  as  %alQS  (Be  happy)  (See 


ARTISTS 


59 


PI.  X,  4)  or  Swqov,  indicating  that  the  gem  was  a  gift,  and 
a  few  are  artists’  signatures.  These,  naturally,  are  not  likely 
to  be  found  on  any  save  very  good  works  and  then,  according 
to  Furtwangler,  they  were  tucked  away  so  as  not  to  be  con¬ 
spicuous  and  interfere  with  either  the  general  design  or  with 
the  purpose  of  the  signet.  This  is  certainly  plausible  enough 
as  a  theory.  We  shall  refer  to  it  later  in  connection  with  the 
facts. 

Artists. — Of  the  artists  of  this  period  we  find  several 
certain  and  probable  names,  but  the  one  pre-eminent,  both  in 
merit  and  in  the  number  of  authentic  signed  works  extant,  is 
that  of  Dexamenos,  the  Chian,  who  probably  worked  at  Athens 
between  450  and  400  B.  C.  We  have  four  gems  that  can  be 
attributed  to  him.  The  first  of  these,  a  chalcedony  scaraboid 
of  light  brownish  tone  with  a  milled  border  which  bears  the 
signature,  AEEAMEFO^,  in  the  lower  left  hand  corner,  repre¬ 
sents  a  lady  at  her  toilet  with  a  slave  before  her  holding  up 
a  mirror  and  with  a  garland  in  her  hand.  Owing  to  the  form 
of  the  letters,  and  the  broad  breast,  narrow  hips  and  treatment 
of  the  hair,  all  showing  connection  with  the  severe  style,  Furt¬ 
wangler  dates  it  about  450  to  440  B.  C.  Above  is  the  name 
MllcH5,  the  genitive  of  Mika,  a  woman,  who  was  doubtless  the 
owner,  and  who  evidently  chose  for  her  signet  device  this  pic¬ 
ture  of  herself  in  a  familiar  pose,  though  it  is  not  probable  that 
any  accurate  portraiture  was  attempted.  The  gem  is  interest¬ 
ing  as  showing  the  need  and  use  of  signets  by  women,  perhaps 
as  a  careful  housewife  to  guard  her  goods  against  pilfering 
slaves,  perhaps  as  a  wealthy  hetaira  who  indulged  in  business 
ventures. 

The  second,  a  scaraboid  of  yellow  jasper  sprinkled  with 
red,  has  a  similar  signature  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner.  It 
also  has  a  milled  border  and  is  a  picture  of  a  crane  standing 
on  one  foot  and  preening  its  wing.  Under  the  raised  foot  is  a 
grasshopper,  and  the  design  and  workmanship  are  very  beauti¬ 
ful.  The  third,  the  famous  flying  crane  (PI.  VII,  1),  is  a 
bluish,  somewhat  clouded  chalcedony  scaraboid.  The  border 


60 


BEST  PERIOD 


is  a  single  line,  and  the  gem,  which  was  found  at  Kertch  in 
the  Crimea,  and  is  now  one  of  the  chief  treasures  of  the  Rus¬ 
sian  Imperial  Cabinet,  bears  the  full  legend,  AEEAMEFO^ 
EPOIE  XIO^  (Dexamenos  the  Chian  made),  in  two  horizontal 
lines  at  the  bottom  of  the  stone.  In  the  fourth  gem,  a  yellow 
and  red  chalcedony  scaraboid,  also  with  the  simple  line  border, 
and  AEEAMEFO^  EPOIE  in  two  lines  at  the  top,  Furtwangler 
thinks  the  artist  reached  the  summit  of  his  excellence,  an 
opinion  that  is  by  no  means  unanimous  among  critics.  It  is 
said  to  have  been  found  in  a  grave  at  Athens  and  is  evidently 
the  portrait  of  some  eminent  Athenian.  Evans  dates  it  about 
450  B.  C.  and  hazards  the  chance  that  it  may  be  Kimon,  but 
Furtwangler  disputes  this  on  the  score  of  its  not  agreeing  with 
Plutarch’s  description  of  him  and  also  because  he  places  the 
date  later,  between  4B0  and  420  B.  C.  King  calls  it  the  artist’s 
own  portrait  which  is,  of  course,  pure  guess-work.  Incidentally 
I  may  add  that  the  signature  has  been  doubted,  though  I  think 
unjustifiably. 

That  Phrygillos,  who  resided  at  Syracuse  in  the  second 
half  of  the  fifth  century  and  designed  coins  there,  but  who 
probably  learned  his  craft  at  Athens,  may  also  have  been  a  gem- 
cutter  is  more  than  suggested  by  a  carnelian,  probably  cut 
down  from  a  scaraboid,  which  bears  the  name,  ^PYriAAO^.  The 
design  is  Eros,  resting  on  one  knee  and  one  hand,  and,  behind 
him,  the  open  shell  from  which  he  was  born  (PI.  VII,  4). 

In  the  first  half  of  the  fourth  century,  when  Attic  art  had 
found  place  among  the  Arcadians,  we  find  the  name  of  the 
Athenian,  Olympios,  who  designed  coins  for  them,  on  a  car¬ 
nelian  ring-stone  engraved  with  an  Er5s  drawing  his  bow  (PI. 
IX,  4).  The  name  is  in  the  nominative  but  the  minute  size 
of  the  letters  together  with  the  knowledge  of  Olympios’  ability 
in  kindred  work  leads  Furtwangler  to  consider  it  an  artist’s 
signature.  With  much  less  reason,  I  think,  he  maintains  that 
the  letters,  ON ATA,  adapted  on  a  fillet  attached  to  the  spear 
leaning  against  a  trophy  which  a  half-draped  Nike  is  erecting 
(PI.  IX,  13),  is  the  signature  of  Onatas,  whom  he  regards  as  a 


ARTISTS 


61 


contemporary  of  Olympics.  The  stone  is  a  chalcedony  scar- 
aboid  and  the  work  is  certainly  beautiful  enough  to  inspire  its 
author  with  a  desire  to  sign  it,  but  my  personal  feeling  in  the 
matter  is  one  of  grave  doubt  as  to  the  antiquity  of  the  gem  it¬ 
self.  The  style  is  too  pretty,  and  either  an  artist’s  signature 
or  an  owner’s  name  on  a  part  of  the  design  itself  is,  to  say 
the  least,  unusual. 

Besides  these,  there  was  undoubtedly  Nausias,  an  Athe¬ 
nian,  as  we  learn  from  an  abusive  passage  preserved  from  an 
oration  delivered  by  Lysias.  No  signed  work  of  his  has  been 
discovered,  but  some  people  may  accept  his  description  as  a 
debauchee  as  being  presumptive  evidence  of  his  possession  of 
an  artistic  temperament. 

In  this  part  of  the  subject  it  is  always  easy  to  speculate, 
but  quite  evident  that  we  are  on  highly  speculative  ground. 
There  is  no  definite  evidence  save  in  the  direct  statement  of 
the  eJtoiet;  and,  when  we  find,  as  we  do,  the  name  of  the  same 
artist,  in  the  nominative,  on  a  gem  of  similar  character,  there 
is  a  pretty  good  presumption  that  it  indicates  the  engraver,  is 
a  signature,  and  that  the  eJtoiet  is  to  be  supplied.  Why,  then, 
should  we  attach  any  weight  to  names  in  the  genitive  with 
which  it  is  quite  as  reasonable  to  supply  arjp,a  (signet)  as 
£QY0V  (work)?  Again,  when  we  find  on  gems  the  names  of 
coin  designers,  like  Phrvgillos  and  Olympios,  there  is  also  a 
fair  presumption  of  identity,  and  these,  too,  are  in  the  nomina¬ 
tive,  while  a  direct  precedent  for  the  use  of  the  genitive  in 
owners’  names  is  found  in  the  “Mikas”  on  the  undoubted  work 
of  Dexamenos,  mentioned  above.  Quite  apart  from  gems,  the 
fact  that  the  names  of  the  designers  on  coins  occur  inscribed 
in  either  case  shows  that  no  definite  inference  can  be  drawn 
from  this  source  alone,  and,  generally  speaking,  I  believe  that 
with  a  name  in  the  nominative  we  have  as  much  right  to  supply 
CJioiei  as  to  put  eQyov  with  one  in  the  genitive.  As  for  the 
arguments  drawn  from  the  fineness  of  the  art  and  the  small 
size  or  unobtrusive  place  of  the  letters,  these  seem  to  me  no 
more  than  plausible  grounds  for  clever  guess-work  and  not 


62 


BEST  PERIOD 


generally  sustained  by  precedents.  The  last  two  considera¬ 
tions,  at  least,  have  evidently  not  been  uniformly  regarded  in 
cases  of  known  signatures  and,  for  the  first,  while  it  supplies 
a  motive,  we  can  only  suggest  that  it  is  a  motive  which  has 
proved  ineffective  in  the  instances  of  quite  a  number  of  master¬ 
pieces.  The  reverse  of  it,  however,  I  think  may  be  counted  on : 
that  a  name  on  a  cheap  gem  is  not  the  maker’s  but  the  owner’s. 

Pyrgoteles,  who  alone  was  commissioned  to  cut  the  por¬ 
trait  of  Alexander,  may  be  classed  at  the  end  of  this  epoch  but, 
unfortunately,  we  know  him  only  historically.  No  gem  that 
can  be  attributed  to  his  hand  has  yet  been  found,  but  such  a 
splendid  discovery  is  always  among  the  possibilities.  The 
probabilities  are  that  no  artist’s  signature  would  appear  on 
any  portrait  of  the  divine  king  but  that  it  would  not  be  omitted 
on  other  work  of  the  “Gem-engraver  to  His  Majesty  ”. 


CHAPTER  IV 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 

The  art  which  we  see  exemplified  in  the  wide  field  of 
Etruscan  scarabs  was  entirely  a  borrowed  development.  The 
form  of  the  scarab  came  to  them  from  their  intercourse  with 
Egypt,  Phoenicia  and  Carthage,  and  from  the  early  importation 
of  Greek  work  and  Greek  artists,  doubtless  with  a  full  sugges¬ 
tion  of  its  efficiency  as  an  amulet,  but,  unlike  the  Greeks,  they 
clung  to  it  through  all  the  periods  of  their  output  with  a  con¬ 
servatism  that  goes  far,  in  my  mind,  to  support  the  theory  of 
their  Oriental  origin.  In  the  matter  of  subjects  they  drew,  at 
first,  altogether  from  the  Greeks  and,  even  when  they  diverged 
upon  lines  of  their  own  mythology  and  ideas,  the  initial  in¬ 
fluence  is  always  apparent. 

During  the  sixth  century  we  find  in  Etruscan  graves,  as 
I  have  said,  imported  Greek  scarabs  and,  also,  Egyptian  and 
Phoenician,  but  not  after  the  early  years  of  the  fifth  century. 
By  then  their  own  manufacture  had  so  increased  as  fully  to 
supply  the  demand. 

The  form  of  the  Etruscan  gem  was,  as  the  chapter  heading 
indicates,  always  the  scarab,  except  in  very  rare  examples  of 
the  substitution  of  some  other  relief  back.  Generally,  even 
when  the  intaglio  is  poor,  the  beetle  is  worked  out  carefully 
and  well  and  the  rim  around  the  base  is  usually  decorated  ex¬ 
cept  in  many  early  scarabs  of  the  first  period :  a  peculiarity 
which  gives  an  easy  method  of  distinguishing  the  native  Etrus¬ 
can  from  the  Greek  work.  Sometimes  the  ornamentation  was 
by  a  leaf  pattern,  sometimes  by  fine  crossed  lines,  sometimes 
by  parallel  strokes.  Only  in  the  case  of  small,  careless  ex¬ 
amples  does  this  distinguishing  peculiarity  fail.  In  late  Etrus- 

63 


64 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


can  work  we  are  apt  to  find  the  form  of  the  beetle  drawn  out 
into  a  long  oval.  The  best  scarabs  are  often  relatively  small 
and  the  work  on  them  almost  microscopic. 

Materials. — By  far  the  commonest  stone,  used  from  the 
first  to  the  last,  was  the  carnelian,  often  of  the  dull,  opaque 
variety  found  in  Italy.  In  the  drill-work  scarabs,  of  which  I 
shall  speak  later,  it  was  practically  universal.  The  sardonyx 
and  banded  agate  were  not  uncommon  and  seem  to  have  grown 
in  favor,  being  often  found  in  the  later  elongated  beetles. 
Chalcedony  was  rare,  always  of  the  gray  variety,  and  there  is 
a  single  example  of  the  plasma.  Green  jasper,  so  much  favored 
in  the  Phoenician  gems,  was  not  used,  and  of  the  pastes,  there 
are  a  dark  blue,  a  brown,  a  green  and  white,  and  an  imitation 
of  sardonyx  upon  which  the  work  seems  to  be  invariably  cheap 
and  poor.  Amethyst  was  never  used. 

Treatment. — The  picture,  as  in  the  old  Greek  gems,  is 
made  to  fill  the  entire  space,  and  all  manner  of  twistings  and 
bendings  are  resorted  to  in  order  to  effect  this  end.  It  was 
always,  save  in  some  of  the  cruder  specimens  of  the  drill-work 
class,  surrounded  by  a  border,  generally  of  straight  or  oblique 
milling  between  two  lines,  known  as  the  cable  border,  or  by 
one  of  dots;  rarely  by  variants  of  Figure  20,  above,  and,  in  a 
single  example,  by  a  sort  of  leaf  pattern  ( Fig.  23 ) .  Here  again 
a  craftsman  trait  is  found  in  the  fact  that  the  border  is  often 


nofloonooo 

Fig.  23.  Fig.  24. 

more  carefully  done  than  the  picture.  In  very  late  examples 
we  find  criss-cross  lines  with  dots  (Fig.  24),  and  in  rude  drill- 
work  scarabs,  often  a  single  line.  Occasionally  the  figures 


Fig.  25.  Fig.  26. 

stand  on  one  or  more  lines  which  are  sometimes  ornamented, 
and  the  exergue  is  frequently  filled  up,  not  with  crossed  lines 


INSCRIPTIONS 


65 


in  the  Phoenician  fashion  but  with  the  design  shown  in  Fig.  25 
(See  PI.  XI,  1,  6,  8,  15;  XII,  5)  or,  in  one  example,  as  in  Fig. 
26  (See  PI.  XI,  7). 

Technique. — The  Etruscan,  being  primarily  an  imitator, 
may  be  said  to  have  shown  the  qualities  of  the  craftsman  rather 
than  of  the  artist.  In  technical  treatment  and  minuteness  of 
detail  the  best  scarabs  reached  a  high  degree  of  excellence,  but 
even  these  seem  often  to  suggest  the  workman,  proud  of  what 
he  can  do,  rather  than  the  artist  who  subjects  himself  to  his  art. 
From  the  best  they  grade  down  to  the  rudest  combinations  of 
mere  drill-borings:  large  scooped  out  depressions  peculiarly 
susceptible  of  a  high  polish.  In  older  specimens  the  polish  of 
the  interior  of  the  design  was  slight,  as  in  the  Greek  work  of 
the  period.  Soon,  however,  striving  artisan-like  for  mere  deco¬ 
rative  effects,  they  elaborated  it  more  and  more,  until  a  high 
interior  polish  became  characteristic  of  Etruscan  work.  It  is 
evident  that  many  of  these  gems,  especially  of  the  drill-work 
class,  were  made  as  ornaments  pure  and  simple,  since  we  find 
them  in  their  original  settings  as  necklaces,  earrings,  etc. 
Varying  peculiarities  of  technique  can  be  best  considered  in 
their  connection  with  the  various  stylistic  developments  of  the 
art. 

Inscriptions. — Inscriptions  are  common  on  Etruscan 
scarabs  except  on  those  of  the  drill-work  class,  where  we  do  not 
find  them.  There  are  no  names  of  owners  or  artists.  The  in¬ 
scription  seems  always  to  be  descriptive  of  the  picture — often 
misdescriptive :  names  of  Greek  heroes  given  not  only  to  char¬ 
acteristic  representations  of  them,  but  often  to  entirely  im¬ 
personal  figures  or  even  incorrectly  as  on  a  gem  where  Kastor 
is  shown  burying  Polydeukes.  These  inscriptions  are,  generally 
speaking,  on  the  best  gems  of  the  earlier  styles  and  are  done 
in  Etruscan  letters  and  spelling.  The  majority  of  the  in¬ 
scriptions  read  from  right  to  left  in  the  impression,  but  many 
run  from  left  to  right. 

The  alphabet,  as  given  by  Dennis,  together  with  several 
forms  I  have  added,  is : 


66 

ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 

A 

PiA  f\ 

p 

<101 

E 

^aa 

2 

/aiw  i 

Z 

t I  1  >  rarely  ^  3 

T 

n.  m-t 

© 

OOO0O® 

T 

Y  y,  rarely 

I 

v  1 

©08 

K 

/  rarely  )j)j 

X 

'J'  J,,  rarely  X 

A 

vN 

Aspirate  H  Q 

M 

ft!  M 

Digamma 

N 

wnin 

(equivalent  to  the  Latin  v  and 

n 

11  n 

pronounced,  probably,  like  w) 

Naturally,  in  the  minute  lettering 

on  gems,  minor  variants 

from  the  above  are  often  found. 

The  E, 

for  instance,  frequently 

seems  quite  regular.  In  older  examples  the  letters,  as  in  the 
old  Greek  style,  end  in  approximate  points.  Later  they  appear 
often  rounded  off  with  little  dots.  Many  false  inscriptions 
were  added  in  the  eighteenth  century  on  genuine  scarabs  and 
often  require  some  knowledge  of  the  antique  in  order  to  dis¬ 
tinguish  them  (PI.  XIII,  23,  24). 

Subjects. — These  varied  considerably  with  the  stylistic 
developments  under  which  heads  I  shall,  also,  refer  to  them. 
Generally  speaking,  we  may  say  that  sacerdotal  and  cult 
scenes  play  a  small  part,  and  luck-bringing  ideas  are  rare. 
The  “picture”  was  the  thing,  and  art  for  art’s  sake,  as  many 
of  our  own  artistic  artisans  phrase  it,  seems  to  have  supplied 
the  controlling  motive.  Even  when  gods  are  represented  they 
are  apt  to  have  their  purely  Greek  attributes  which  shows  a 
pictorial  rather  than  a  devotional  purpose.  The  Athena  with 
wings  is  Archaic  Greek  as  well  as  Etruscan,  though  the 
Etruscan  deities  had  a  weakness  for  wings;  so,  too,  her  at¬ 
tribute  of  the  serpent  (PI.  XI,  1).  The  bearded  Dionysos  is 
essentially  Greek,  but  the  added  attributes  of  Zeus  and 
Poseidon — thunderbolt  and  trident,  as  found  on  one  gem — is 
an  Italian  idea  and  indicates  the  breadth  and  scope  of  the 
Dionysiac  cult.  Poseidon  appears,  too,  with  his  own  symbols, 
and  Apollo  slaying  a  polypus,  symbolic  either  of  his  sea  power, 


SUBJECTS 


67 


of  the  Sun-god  dispelling  the  winter  or  of  the  healing  divinity 
combating  the  demon  of  pestilence.  The  monster  here  shown 
is  also  pictured  on  very  early  Greek  gems  and  is  perhaps  the 
prototype  of  the  Python  of  sophisticated  legend.  Hephaistos 
is  much  more  the  Greek  god  than  he  is  the  Etruscan.  Hermes 
appears  as  the  conductor  of  souls,  which  latter,  besides  being 
figured  in  human  form,  either  as  small  eidolon  figures  ( PI.  XI, 
24;  XII,  1,  2)  or  coming  up  from  the  ground  or  out  of  a  jar 
symbolizing  the  Under- world  (PI.  XII,  19),  are  also  shown 
as  birds,  more  especially  the  swan  with  a  human  head  (PI. 
XIII,  19)  or  even  as  butterflies,  or  are  indicated  by  the  butter¬ 
fly  wings  on  a  female  form, — these  as  early  as  the  fifth  cent¬ 
ury  B.  C.  Frequently  winged  figures  are  not  easy  to  name 
(PI.  XI,  24;  XII,  6;  XIII,  11,  14,  15).  A  bearded,  winged 
man  with  a  sleeping  hero  is,  doubtless,  Hypnos.  Thanatos, 
also,  may  be  represented  (PI.  XIII,  15),  but  many  of  the 
winged  deities,  male  and  female,  baffle  identification.  Eros 
is  found,  both  in  the  severe  and  in  the  free  style  of  Greek  art 
(PI.  XII,  25)  and  always  as  a  boy  budding  into  youth.  The 
Earth-giants  are  pictured,  either  as  wild  looking  men  hurling 
rocks  (PI.  XII,  21)  or  often,  with  wings  and  serpent  legs, 
fighting  against  gods,  especially  Zeus  and  Athena;  a  favorite 
Etruscan  subject.  In  the  matter  of  nomenclature,  the  Etruscan 
deities  as  identified  with  the  Greek  were  Tinia  for  Zeus, 
Nethuns  or  Nethunus  for  Poseidon,  Charun  for  Hades,  Seth- 
lans  for  Hephaistos,  Turms  or  Mercur  for  Hermes,  Pupluns  or 
Phuphluns  for  Dionysos,  Usil  or  Aplu  for  Apollo,  who,  however, 
often  bore  his  Greek  name  unchanged,  Lala,  Losna  or  Thana  for 
Artemis,  Turan  for  Aphrodite,  Cupra  or  Thalna  for  Hera  and 
Minerfe,  Menfre  or  Menrva  for  Athena.  In  some  of  these  it 
is  easy  to  see  the  Roman  derivatives. 

On  all  the  earlier  scarabs,  Greek  hero  types  from  the 
poetic  cycles  are  very  common.  The  Prometheus  myth  is 
pictured  on  one  gem,  Laokoon  on  another  (See  PI.  XVII,  6). 
Kapaneus  is  a  favorite,  either  being  struck  by  lightning  (PL 
XI,  9,  20),  falling  from  a  ladder  (See  PI.  XVII,  4)  or  bear¬ 
ing  half  a  gate.  Tydeus  appears,  wounded  and  falling  (PI. 


68 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


XII,  3),  also  Peleus,  Atalante  bathing  or  anointing  herself, 
Achilleus  with  the  arrow  in  his  heel  (PI.  XIII,  20),  picking 
up  his  arms  (PI.  XIII,  24),  nursing  his  grievance  (PI.  XI,  4) 
or  with  Penthesileia  (PI.  XI,  15),  Paris  bending  his  bow  or 
drawing  an  arrow  from  his  quiver  (PI.  XII,  14),  Aias  (Ajax) 
killing  himself  (PL  XII,  15)  or  bearing  the  slain  Achilleus 
(PL  XI,  7),  Odysseus  carrying  the  sack  of  Aiolos  containing 
the  captive  winds  or  sacrificing  a  ram  preparatory  to  his 
descent  into  the  lower  world,  Kastor  fatally  wounded  (Pl. 
XII,  11),  Perseus,  with  or  without  the  winged  shoes  of  Hermes, 
either  cutting  off  or  carrying  away  the  head  of  Medousa  (Pl. 
XI,  14;  XII,  9),  Jason  with  his  ship,  the  Argo,  Ixion  bound 
to  Ms  wheel  (PL  XII,  16),  Tantalos  trying  in  vain  to  drink 
(PL  XII,  17),  Hyakinthos  (Hyacinthus)  wounded  by  the 
discus  of  Apollo  (PL  XII,  18),  Aktaion  with  his  dog  (Pl.  XII, 
20),  Philoktetes  bitten  by  the  serpent  (PL  XIII,  21),  Theseus 
lifting  the  rock,  an  unidentified  hero  striking  a  serpent  and 
another  riding  on  a  tortoise  which  he  is  feeding,  Triptolemos 
in  the  winged  chariot.  Kadmos  at  the  spring  seems  to  be 
found  only  in  gems  of  the  later  style  (PL  XII,  22)  and  Her- 
akles,  very  common  on  the  later  gems,  was  rather  rare  on  the 
earlier  ones.  On  these  latter  he  is  leading  away  a  woman  as 
a  bride,  fighting  some  adversary  (PL  XI,  6),  carrying  off 
Turan,  the  Etruscan  Yenus,  contending  with  the  river-god, 
Strymon,  by  filling  his  stream  with  rocks,  seated  on  his  own 
funeral  pyre  (PL  XI,  21)  or  seizing  Earth-giants.  Also  the 
Italian  saga  of  his  being  lifted  up  to  Heaven  to  become  a  god 
is  pictured  (PL  XIII,  13).  See  also,  PL  XII,  4,  5,  12.  Other 
heroes  may  be  shown  occasionally,  and  there  are  many  pictures 
which  we  cannot  identify  but  which  present  a  fruitful  field 
for  speculation.  There  are  heroes  departing,  consulting,  arm¬ 
ing,  disarming,  mending  armor,  fighting,  being  borne  away 
wounded,  cutting  off  an  enemy’s  head,  inspecting  it,  resting, 
a  kneeling  archer,  a  young  warrior  kneeling  or  bending  over, 
a  youth  with  a  dog  or  holding  an  amphora,  a  lyre,  a  staff  or 
a  shepherd’s  crook,  etc.,  etc.  (PL  XI,  5,  8,  11,  13,  16,  17,  18, 
19,  22;  XII,  24;  XIII,  24).  Also  there  are  a  few  young  heroes 


STYLISTIC  DEVELOPMENTS 


69 


sacrificing,  a  soothsayer  (PL  XIII,  10)  and  a  youth  with  a 
priestly  mask  such  as  was  used  in  Etruscan  cults. 

Of  course  some  of  these  may  be  scenes  from  everyday  life 
( PI.  XI,  17, 18, 19 ;  XII,  24 ) ,  but  we  suspect  the  heroic  element 
in  all,  not  only  because  of  the  hero  names  that  are  arbitrarily 
added  to  them  in  so  many  instances  ( PI.  XI,  4,  6,  7, 
11,  12,  13;  XII,  3,  9,  11,  14,  16,  20)  but  because  there  does 
not  seem  to  be  much  of  the  human  life  element  otherwise 
pictured  or  that  appealed  to  Etruscan  taste.  Female  figures 
are  shown  carrying,  filling  or  emptying  urns,  bearing  heroes 
away  or  supporting  them  when  wounded. 

A  representation  of  a  human  head  (PI.  XII,  7)  is  found 
on  a  few  gems,  mostly  later  ones,  and  there  is  one  that  shows 
a  bust  that  looks  as  if  it  were  impaled,  one,  a  head  combined 
with  a  rooster,  and  one,  a  face  combined  with  a  lion’s  head  and 
a  satyr  mask.  Such  conceits  suggest  the  otherwise  rare  magic- 
working  idea. 

Animal  figures  are  very  infrequent  at  first,  though  there 
are  examples  of  the  lion  (PI.  XI,  10),  lioness,  a  horse  lying 
down  and  rolling  and  goats  fighting  in  heraldic  attitudes. 
Later  they  become  more  common,  especially  in  the  drill-work 
gems.  There  are  but  few  demonic  beasts. 

The  Etruscans  seem  to  have  had  a  special  taste  for  scenes 
of  fighting,  bloodshed  and  death  and  this  taste  is  well  in 
evidence  in  their  scarab  pictures. 

Stylistic  Developments. — Considering  stylistic  develop¬ 
ments,  we  find  first,  toward  the  end  of  the  sixth  century,  the 
distinct  Archaic  treatment  of,  for  the  most  part,  stiff  single 
figures  standing  or  walking,  and  rarely  bent  or  twisted  as  in 
later  work  (PI.  XI,  1 — 3).  They  are  clothed  and  the  tunic 
is  often  trussed  up,  falling  to  the  middle  of  the  leg  or  showing 
the  contour  of  the  legs  and  hanging  between  them  in  parallel 
lines.  Occasionally  there  are  groups.  There  are  no  inscrip¬ 
tions  on  these  gems  and  the  types  are  generally  of  gods  rather 
than  heroes.  The  winged  Athena,  sometimes  with  a  snake  or 
snakes  as  attributes  (PI.  XI,  1),  is  a  favorite;  also  other 
winged  goddesses,  the  bearded  Dionysos,  and  Hermes,  Zeus 


70 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


and  Athena  contending  with  Earth-giants.  Some  seem  to  be 
direct  copies  from  Greek  work. 

In  the  second  group,  which  may  be  roughly  dated  from 
500  to  450  B.  C.,  we  find  the  Greek  transition  style  of  the  be¬ 
ginning  of  the  fifth  century  become  the  classic  Etruscan  (PI. 
XI,  4 — 21).  They  are  very  similar  to  the  sculptures  of  the 
Aigina  pediments  and  the  vases  of  Euphronios,  and  the  pictures 
can  only  be  distinguished  from  first-class  Greek  work  by  a 
certain  dryness,  stiffness  and  lack  of  that  freedom  which  the 
most  perfect  craftsmanship  and  the  most  painstaking  care 
cannot  attain.  Explanatory  inscriptions  are  characteristic 
(PL  XI,  4,  6,  7,  11 — 13,  17)  and  heroes  are  shown  instead  of 
gods,  single  or  in  groups  of  two  or,  rarely,  more  figures,  gen¬ 
erally  unbearded,  naked  or  partly  so,  with  Greek  helmet  and 
even  the  Ionic  corselet  when  a  corselet  is  worn.  The  figures 
are  seldom  upright  but  bending  and  twisting  in  all  manner 
of  contorted  attitudes.  Females  hardly  appear,  except  Ata- 
lante,  who  is  shown  naked.  They  seem  to  have  especially  fa¬ 
vored  the  heroes  of  the  Theban  War,  often  adding  their  names 
to  impersonal  pictures.  Warriors  kneeling,  often  wounded, 
(PI.  XI,  5,  7,  9,  15,  16,  20)  and  the  athlete  with  a  strigil  (PI. 

XI,  12)  were  popular.  The  figure,  the  bodies  of  which  are 
usually  in  full  front,  begins  now  to  be  shown  with  one  leg  in 
profile,  the  other  with  the  foot  foreshortened  (PI.  XI,  12,  14) ; 
some  have  the  weight  resting  on  one  leg,  some  on  both.  The 
muscles  are  all  carefully  worked  out,  including  the  linea  alba, 
and  the  hair  is  represented  with  fine  locks  curling  at  the  end 
(PI.  XI,  6,  11,  12,  14,  18,  19),  though  occasionally  it  is  done 
only  by  parallel  strokes.  The  knot  or  bag  arrangement  at  the 
back  of  the  head  is  also  in  evidence  (PI.  XI,  4,  5,  8).  In  some 
there  is  found  a  tendency  toward  fuller,  softer,  rounder  and 
more  fleshy  bodies,  yet  with  the  linea  alba  running  down  from 
the  navel,  as  in  the  severe  Greek  style. 

Still  dating  roughly  from  480  to  450  B.  C.,  we  find  scarabs 
which  show  the  free  Greek  style  breaking  through  (PI.  XI,  23; 

XII,  1 — 10),  though  the  legs,  very  frequently  one  full  front, 
the  other  in  profile,  and  the  shoulders,  overbroad  and  square, 


STYLISTIC  DEVELOPMENTS 


71 


still  bear  traces  of  the  severe.  The  figures,  let  us  say  of  Class 
Three,  are  now  often  upright  and  the  head,  sometimes  shown 
in  full  face  (PI.  XI,  23),  begins  to  look  rather  square,  with  the 
hair  lying  flat.  Clothing,  when  represented,  is  treated  more 
naturally.  An  unbearded  Hermes  is  here  found  along  with 
the  hero  types  (PI.  XII,  1,  2,  5 — 10). 

From  450  to  400  B.  C.  (Class  Four)  the  influence  of  the 
free  Greek  style  is  apparent  in  forms  without  the  hard  treat¬ 
ment  of  muscles  and  that  leave  little  to  be  wished  for  in  beauty 
and  accuracy  (PI.  XII,  11 — 21).  Some  groups  seem  to  be 
suggested  by  Greek  paintings.  The  bodies  are  large  and  fleshy, 
rounded  but  nevertheless  powerful.  They  are  rather  too 
heavy  and  lacking  in  light  elegance,  and  the  heads,  inclined 
to  be  square  as  in  the  work  of  Polycleitos,  are  pictured  in  all 
views.  The  hair  generally  lies  flat,  though  sometimes  a  head 
showing  Archaic  survival  has  the  hair  with  little  twists  at 
the  end  of  each  stroke :  a  sort  of  craftsman’s  essay  at  the  older 
curled  up  treatment.  A  departure  from  former  styles  is  found 
in  the  usual  profile  presentation  of  the  upper  half  of  the  body. 
Contortions,  which  are  still  resorted  to  for  the  purpose  of  fill¬ 
ing  the  field,  are  handled  much  better  as  is  the  foreshortening. 
Often  the  figures  wear  a  short  mantle  which  is  apt  to  follow 
the  curves  of  the  back  and  serve  more  as  a  background  than 
a  covering  (PI.  XII,  14,  17,  19).  The  severe  style  of  showing 
one  leg  in  profile  and  one  in  full  front  is  now  generally  given 
up.  Inscriptions  are  still  found,  but  more  rarely  (PI.  XII, 
11,  14,  16,  18,  20)  and,  while  the  youthful  hero  types  are  still 
the  favored  subjects,  there  are  also  Apollo,  Poseidon, 
Hephaistos  and  other  gods. 

Of  course,  with  these,  there  are  many  gems  that  it  is  im¬ 
possible  to  place  with  any  degree  of  accuracy.  They  may  be 
poorer  examples  of  former  periods  or  late  affectations  of 
earlier  styles.  It  is  in  cases  of  this  character  that  Dr.  Furt- 
wangler  often  attributes  with  a  definiteness  which  I  cannot 
feel  is  justified. 

Finally,  in  the  fourth  century,  the  style  loses  all  traces 
of  severity  (PI.  XII,  22 — 25).  The  space  is  no  longer  filled 


72 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


on  principle,  though  the  tendency  is  still  very  apparent,  and 
inscriptions  are  generally  lacking.  The  body  is  apt  to  be 
plump  and  soft  but  the  workmanship  shows  a  distinct  falling 
off  in  finish  and  accuracy.  We  now  find  a  departure  in  the 
occurrence  of  female  figures  from  the  cycle  of  Aphrodite,  but 
the  number  of  gems  of  this  class  is  much  fewer.  The  in¬ 
spiration  of  Greek  methods  fails  before  the  growing  popularity 
of  a  native  stylistic  movement  to  be  now  considered. 

A  distinct  and  typically  Etruscan  development  of  what 
we  may  not  unfairly  call  the  scarab  industry  is  found — say 
from  425  to  275  B.  C. — in  what  I  have  referred  to  several 
times  as  the  drill-work  class  of  scarabs  (PI.  XIII,  1 — 19,  22, 
23).  The  great  majority  of  the  scarabs  found  and  to  be  seen 
in  collections  are  of  this  type  and  they  occur  not  only  in 
Etruria  but  all  over  Italy,  in  Sardinia,  and  at  many  points 
in  the  East,  indicating  a  heavy  exportation.  Also  they  show 
many  grades  of  excellence  but  are  for  the  most  part  rude, 
sketchy,  unattractive  and  lacking  in  artistic  or  even  technical 
merit.  Features  and  hair  are  often  not  even  indicated.  Of 
course  the  blunt  drill  was  occasionally  used  on  scarabs  of 
other  classes,  but  in  these  the  entire  design  is  made  up  of  a 
number  of  saucer-like  depressions  of  varying  dimensions.  All 
these  gems  are  highly  polished  in  the  intaglio  and  seem  gen¬ 
erally  intended  for  ornaments  rather  than  signets.  In  some 
of  them  there  is  found  an  attempt  to  imitate  the  more  antique 
work,  the  figures  being  finished,  especially  their  clothes,  wings, 
heads  and  hair,  with  a  sharp  instrument  (PI.  XIII,  10 — 19). 
The  last  is  then  represented  by  parallel  straight  lines,  end¬ 
ing,  sometimes,  with  turned  up  strokes.  Furtwangler  hes¬ 
itates  whether  to  place  these  gems  as  of  exclusively  Etruscan 
or  of  broader  central  Italian  origin. 

Generally  speaking,  the  entire  class  stands  distinct  and  by 
itself  and,  though  some  bear  copies  of  the  older  scarab  motives, 
such  as  kneeling  and  running  men,  warriors,  etc.,  they  have, 
in  the  main,  their  own  subjects  as  well  as  their  own  style. 
Furtwangler  speaks  of  only  two  bearing  inscriptions,  one  in 
Etruscan  and  one  in  Latin,  and  suggests  that  many  of  them, 


DRILL-WORK  SCARABS 


73 


along  with  the  fourth  century  gems  last  noted,  may  have  been 
made  in  other  parts  of  Italy,  perhaps  by  the  Samnites.  The 
almost  total  absence  of  inscriptions  deprives  us  of  any  direct 
evidence  on  the  subject  and  it  is  easy  to  argue  both  ways  from 
the  pictures.  Though  Etruscan  in  character  they  seem  less  ex¬ 
clusively  so  than  do  those  on  the  other  classes  of  scarabs,  and 
many  Italian  ideas  appear,  especially  in  such  cult  figures  as 
the  Campanian  river-god,  the  man-headed  bull,  Acheloos  (PI. 
XIII,  23).  We  may  hold  that  the  Etruscans  made  the  gems 
and,  naturally,  modified  the  subjects  when  they  sought  to 
please  foreign  customers,  or  that  the  Italians  had  learned 
from  the  Etruscans  and  absorbed  Etruscan  notions,  as  the 
Etruscans  had  absorbed  the  Greek.  In  the  light  of  present 
knowledge,  only  the  German  savants  will  settle  such  questions 
for  you  positively — an  aid  which  is  somewhat  marred  by  their 
settling  them  in  so  many  different  ways. 

As  a  suggestion,  it  seems,  at  first  glance,  rather  surpris¬ 
ing  that,  with  the  long  lines  of  finished  gem-engraving  among 
the  Greeks  of  the  South  and  the  Etruscans  of  the  North,  the 
middle  districts  should  have  remained  in  a  state  of  barbaric 
unproductiveness,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  we  know  that  these 
latter  races  wrere,  for  the  most  part,  rural  folk,  and  they  may 
have  found  it  more  convenient  to  buy  the  few  gems  they  needed. 
It  is,  generally  speaking,  rather  later  that  we  find  distinctively 
Roman  work. 

Among  the  subject  motives,  which  also  distinguish  the 
drill-work  scarabs  from  the  others,  are,  first  and  foremost, 
many  Herakles  (PI.  XIII,  2,  5,  9,  12,  13)  and  Seilenos  (PI. 
XIII,  8)  types  which  have  here  a  tendency  to  grade  into  each 
other.  Both  appear  carrying  large  amphoras  (PI.  XIII,  2,  8), 
kneeling  upon  a  deer,  or  floating  on  a  board  laid  over  am¬ 
phoras  (PI.  XIII,  12.  Compare  PI.  XII,  13),  sometimes  with 
a  sail  added  and  even  with  sun,  moon  and  stars  in  the  field. 
Herakles  is  by  far  the  more  common  of  the  two.  Sometimes 
Seilenos  is  figured  with  him  and  occasionally  he  has  some 
other  companion.  Also  he  appears  seated,  deep  in  thought 
(Compare  PI.  XII,  12),  wearied,  bathing,  bringing  water  from 


74 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


a  spring  and,  on  some  gems,  catching  it  in  his  lion  skin,  but 
the  amphora  attribute  is  the  most  persistent.  Evidently  there 
was  a  cult  connection  in  early  Italian  legend  between  Her- 
akles  and  Seilenos  or  between  local  deities  with  whom  they 
were  identified,  and  there  is  evidence  that  it  had  to  do  with 
nature,  water,  and  the  protection  of  springs,  especially  warm 
springs.  The  Latin  and  Roman  rustic  god,  Sylvanus,  shows 
a  possible  Herakles  relationship  in  the  fact  that  both  presided 
over  hot  springs,  and  their  Chthonian  power  was  recognized 
in  the  sacrifice  of  swine.  On  the  other  hand,  the  amphora 
motive  often  seems  to  suggest  something  quite  different  from 
the  water  idea,  and  the  attitudes  of  the  figures  indicate  the 
love  of  a  stronger  beverage:  Bacchanalian  tendencies  which, 
in  the  case  of  Seilenos,  are,  of  course,  quite  in  character. 

Of  the  greater  gods,  there  is  Apollo,  whose  worship  spread 
early  through  Italy.  Sometimes  he  is  borne  upon  a  swan,  as 
at  Chalkedon,  or  in  a  wagon  drawn  by  deer;  also  Artemis 
appears  with  her  attendant  deer  and  Leto  fleeing  with  her  two 
children. 

Of  demonic  figures  we  find  centaurs,  Pegasos,  the 
Chimaira,  seirens  (PI.  XIII,  16,  17),  Medousa,  Tritons  (PI. 
XIII,  6),  fantastic  combinations  of  demonic  forms  (PI.  XIII, 
22,  23),  and  many  unidentified  winged  personages  (PI.  XIII, 
11,  14,  15). 

What  cult  figures  there  are  seem  to  be  broadly  Italian 
rather  than  restricted  to  Etruscan  ideas.  The  man-headed 
bull,  for  instance  (PI.  XIII,  23),  is  especially  Campanian. 
Hero  types  are  almost  entirely  lacking,  but  animals,  sometimes 
arranged  with  one  head  for  two  bodies  or  the  reverse  (PI.  XIII, 
1,  7),  are  more  common  than  on  other  classes  of  Etruscan 
scarabs.  When  ordinary  human  figures  are 
found  they  are  often  mounted  and  fighting 
(PI.  XIII,  3),  or  in  chariots  (PI.  XIII,  4). 
The  Gallic  shield  (Fig.  27)  is  characteristic 
and  tells  of  the  wars  between  Etruria  and 
her  northern  neighbors. 

In  the  third  century-  B.  C.,  with  the 


FORGERIES 


75 


growing  Roman  supremacy,  the  national  types  of  Etruscan 
scarabs  gradually  die  out.  Their  influence  on  Roman  develop¬ 
ments  was  marked  and  will  be  shown  later.  Also  it  is  pos¬ 
sible  that  work  on  more  or  less  Etruscan  lines  continued  for 
some  time  in  other  parts  of  Italy  but,  as  a  purely  national  art, 
it  disappeared. 

Forgeries. — During  the  early  half  of  the  nineteenth  century, 
the  enthusiasm  of  collectors  was  especially  directed  toward 
Etruscan  scarabs,  following  the  new  discoveries  in  Etruria, 
and,  consequently,  in  that  golden  age  of  forgery,  these  gems 
received  a  large  share  of  attention  from  the  makers  of  such 
frauds.  The  drill-work  scarabs  were  especially  easy  to  imitate, 
and  much  confusion  was  introduced  into  the  fields  of  study 
and  connoisseurship.  Still,  the  highest  order  of  the  forger’s 
skill  does  not  seem  to  have  been  applied  to  them,  still  less  the 
highest  order  of  forger’s  knowledge.  They  turned  out  machine 
made  beetles  in  large  numbers  and  quite  failed  to  consider  the 
extreme  care  with  which,  as  I  have  said,  the  Etruscan  artist 
treated  the  back-relief,  even  when  his  intaglio  was  rude  and 
barbarous.  This  part  of  the  work,  though  still  mechanical,  is 
done  much  better  today,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  there  seems 
to  be  little  attention  given  to  making  the  forgery  plausible  as 
a  whole;  so  little,  that,  in  examining  the  up-to-date  scarabs  in 
Italian  shops,  one  even  hesitates  as  to  whether  they  have  been 
done  with  intent  to  deceive.  If  they  have,  it  can  only  be  for 
the  tourist  market.  I  have  never  seen  one  of  the  forgeries 
Dr.  King  speaks  of  as  the  work  of  skilful  hands  of  the  end  of 
the  eighteenth  century,  when,  he  says,  they  took  genuine 
scarabs  with  poor  designs,  ground  them  down  and  cut  a  good 
picture  on  the  base.  He  holds  that  they  exposed  themselves 
by  the  Roman  rather  than  Etruscan  character  of  their  intaglio 
work  but  a  much  easier  test  would  be  based  on  the  impos¬ 
sibility  of  cutting  down  a  scarab  far  enough  to  obliterate  the 
original  design  without  leaving  indications  of  such  work  on 
the  base  or  the  base  ornamentation. 

Of  course  the  best  safeguard  is  found  in  demanding  the 
unanimous  verdict  of  material,  character  of  subject,  archaBolog- 


76 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


ical  accuracy,  treatment,  style,  etc.,  as  conforming  to  the  period 
and  class  of  which  the  gem  purports  to  be.  For  instance,  among 
the  imitations  of  one  kind  or  another  there  are  many  amethyst 
scarabs  which  can  be  dismissed  with  the  brief  comment  that 
the  Etruscans  did  not  use  that  stone.  Altogether,  it  is  usually 
better  to  reject  every  gem  of  which  you  feel  in  the  least  sus¬ 
picious,  for  a  suspected  antique  is  a  much  less  satisfactory 
possession  than  a  piece  of  known  modern  work.  With  advanc¬ 
ing  knowledge  you  may  occasionally  come  to  suspect  scarabs 
once  bought  with  all  confidence.  That  is  a  part  of  the  price 
you  pay  for  experience  and  information  which  can  hardly  be 
gained  on  other  terms.  It  should  be  philosophically  entered 
in  the  profit  and  loss  column. 

A  word  may  be  added,  in  closing  this  chapter,  about  the 
not  very  rare  practice  of  cutting  down  scarabs  so  as  to  make 
them  fit  in  rings.  As  a  piece  of  barbarism  it  is  fairly  diagnostic, 
but  I  would  be  inclined  to  regard  the  fact  of  a  gem  having  been 
thus  treated  as  pretty  fair  presumptive  evidence  of  its  genuine¬ 
ness.  I  doubt  if  the  forger  ever  lived  who  was  quite  fool  enough 
or  clever  enough,  if  you  please,  deliberately  to  depreciate  the 
value  of  his  goods  to  that  extent,  while  to  build  a  forgery  on 
such  lines  ab  initio,  so  that  it  would  not  disclose  its  secret, 
would  require  an  order  of  genius  which  I  like  to  believe  is  not 
to  be  found  among  these  gentry.  It  certainly  is  not  among  the 
commercially  inclined,  though  it  cannot  be  denied  that  there 
have  been  very  rare  instances  of  forgery  for  forgery’s  sake, 
where  mere  love  of  deceiving  the  cognoscenti  and  pride  in  the 
exploit  seem  to  have  been  the  motive.  The  danger  of  coming 
upon  such  a  work  is  rather  infinitesimal  and,  even  so,  our  artist 
is  not  apt  to  be  infallible. 


CHAPTER  V 


GEMS  OF  THE  HELLENISTIC  PERIOD 

This  period  may  be  said  to  extend  from  about  300  to  100 
B.  C.  and,  in  Greece  proper  and  the  East,  to  nearly  the  Chris¬ 
tian  era.  In  Italy  and  the  West  the  Roman-Italian  style,  of 
which  the  next  chapter  treats,  began  to  affect  it  after  100  B.  C., 
having  first  been  affected  by  it,  until,  during  the  principiate 
of  Augustus,  the  whole  blended  into  a  world-wide  Grseco- 
Roman  uniformity. 

During  the  preceding  epochs  it  has  been  possible,  generally 
speaking,  for  experts  to  date  particular  gems  with  some  accu¬ 
racy,  though  I  doubt  if  the  claim  to  being  able  to  place  within 
a  decade  can  often  be  made  good.  Now,  even  the  most  “German” 
theorists  admit  that,  barring  a  few  definite  phenomena  and 
the  inferences  to  be  drawn  from  them,  anywhere  in  two  hundred 
years  is  the  best  they  can  pretend  to  do.  Doubtless  many 
Grseco-Roman  stones  of  a  later  period  are  also  indistinguish¬ 
able  from  true  Hellenistic  gems.  The  shape  of  the  stone  is  no 
longer  a  guide,  for  scarab  and  scaraboid  have  practically  disap¬ 
peared  with  the  exception  of  a  few  poorly  done  scarabs  bearing 
Egyptian  symbols  like  the  cross,  systrum  and  wingless  sphinx 
and  which  are  probably  Alexandrian  work.  There  are  a  very 
few  pierced,  rather  longish  four-cornered  stones  and  conical 
seals  of  various  forms,  but  the  ring-stone  now  was  practically 
universal. 

These  had  begun  to  develop,  as  we  have  seen,  as  a  matter 
of  convenience,  from  the  scaraboid,  the  rim  of  which  gradually 
disappeared  until  the  convex  and  flat  surfaces  met  and  the 
picture  was  usually  cut  in  the  former.  Naturally  there  was 
then  no  place  or  need  for  piercing,  and  thus  the  ring-stone 

77 


78 


HELLENISTIC  PERIOD 


with  a  strong  convexity  on  the  picture  side  became  the  charac¬ 
teristic  form  of  the  Hellenistic  gem.  A  unique  example  is  pict¬ 
ured  on  both  sides  as  is  the  case  with  some  Graeco-Persian 
scaraboids.  Along  with  these  there  are  also  a  great  many  flat 
ring-stones.  A  few  large  gems  were  set  in  gilded  or  even  in 
hollow  rings. 

Materials. — Chalcedony  is  still  very  common  but  ceases 
to  dominate,  and  the  mottled  chalcedony  and  jasper  which 
Dexamenos  loved  appears  occasionally.  The  fashionable  stones 
were  those  introduced  from  the  East  by  Alexander  and  his 
successors:  the  hyacinthine  and  Syrian  garnets,  generally  cut 
with  a  strong  convexity  to  allow  for  the  best  play  of  light  and 
occasionally  concave  on  the  under  side.  Small  garnets  with 
careless  cuttings  are  common,  especially  in  the  East,  down  to 
the  time  of  the  Empire.  The  beryl  now  appears  for  the  first 
time  and,  naturally,  only  in  the  best  work.  The  same  is  true 
of  the  topaz.  Amethysts,  also  cut  convex,  as  were  most  of  the 
transparent  stones,  come  again  into  favor,  and  rock-crystal 
is  still  used.  Carnelian,  agate  and  sardonyx  remain  common, 
and  in  Italy  and  the  West,  dark,  translucent  sards,  cut  convex, 
rival  the  garnets.  Peridot  and  aquamarine  occur  rarely. 

Pastes  were  considerably  used,  sometimes  moulded,  some¬ 
times  engraved.  The  white  is  no  longer  found.  They  seem 
to  have  preferred  green,  yellow,  brownish  and,  more  rarely, 
violet.  Some  were  quite  large  and  convex. 

Technique. — The  style  now  was  pretty  much  the  same  all 
over.  It  was  simply  a  natural  development  in  the  line  of  the 
tendencies  we  have  already  indicated,  often  an  over-develop¬ 
ment.  “Greatness”  had  generally  disappeared.  Softness,  a 
minute  detail  effected  by  fine  sharp  lines  which  take  from  the 
breadth  of  the  work,  and  a  desire  for  showy  contrasts  were 
popular.  Anger  and  joy  were  depicted.  Soft,  fleshy  forms  in 
reposeful  attitudes  were  favored.  While  they  strove  for  plastic 
beauty,  they  spoiled  it  by  the  sharp  lines,  used  especially  in 
depicting  the  hair,  occasionally,  even,  of  the  eyebrows.  The 
eye  is  generally  large  and  well  open,  sometimes  with  a  pupil 
(PI.  XIV,  3;  XV,  11;  XVI,  1,  2,  4,  7—14),  and  the  elongation 


SUBJECTS 


79 


of  the  figure  was  often  carried  to  excess  (PL  XIV,  2).  Still 
there  is  great  charm  in  much  of  this  work.  Often  there  is  a 
characteristic  lightness  and  sketchiness  which  is  not  the  result 
of  carelessness  but  is  born  of  the  artistic  tendency  to  slur  over 
details  and  emphasize  only  essentials  (PI.  XIV,  2, 4 ;  XV,  1, 4 — 8, 
15).  It  might  almost  be  called  an  impressionistic  movement. 
Many  gems  reproduce  the  easy  attitudes,  sensuous  conceptions 
and  emotional  tendencies  found  in  the  sculpture  of  Praxiteles 
and  Skopas  (PI.  XIV,  3,  5 — 8,  11,  13)  and,  of  course,  there  is 
much  work  that  indicates  classicism  (PI.  XIV,  2,  14;  XV,  21) 
— an  archaic  tendency  to  reproduce  earlier  ideas  and  ideals 
even  to  the  milled  border  which,  as  I  have  suggested,  may 
result  in  the  misdating  of  the  stones  on  which  it  is  found.  This 
is  especially  the  case  with  representations  of  gods,  where  con¬ 
servatism  would  be  most  natural. 

Good  engravings  were  highly  polished;  poor,  and  even 
the  clever,  sketchy  ones  were  generally  left  more  or  less  dull. 

Subjects. — The  convex,  oval  stones  usually  carry  but  one 
figure  treated  in  a  statuesque  manner,  often  leaning  against  a 
column  or  in  some  similar  pose  (See  Plate  XIV).  Groups,  how¬ 
ever,  treated  somewhat  pictorially,  are  found  occasionally  (PI. 
XV,  1,  4, 16) .  The  bust  instead  of  simply  the  head  is  character¬ 
istic  of  much  of  the  portraiture  of  this  period  (PI.  XVI,  1 — 3, 
5,  8,  12 — 14),  and  full-face  representations  of  men  and  gods  are 
not  rare  (PI.  XVI,  7,  12,  13).  Faces  are  generally  beardless. 
Subjects  and  poses  were  repeated,  which  suggests  their  deriva¬ 
tion  from  favorite  statue  or  painting  types,  a  practice  much 
in  favor  during  later  Augustan  times. 

Portraits  which  now  appear  in  large  numbers  on  deeply 
cut  stones  are  the  most  significant  development  of  this  period. 
The  political  prominence  of  many  individuals  throughout  wide 
regions  and  the  consequent  desire  to  compliment  them  fostered 
this  tendency.  We  have  many  of  Alexander,  perhaps  considered 
luck-bringing  on  the  basis  of  his  own  good  fortune  and,  later, 
of  Mithridates  (PI.  XVI,  2)  ;  probably,  also,  Demetrios  Polior- 
ketes,  Demetrios  Philhetairos,  Ptolemaios  Soter,  Eumenes  I, 
and  many  others  (PI.  XVI,  1,  3,  4,  6,  8,  14).  Those  of  rulers 


80 


HELLENISTIC  PERIOD 


doubtless  tended,  with  time,  toward  idealization.  Those  of 
private  persons  who  followed  the  princely  custom  of  using  their 
own  likenesses  for  signets  are  probably  much  truer  to  life  (PI. 
XVI,  9).  Also  seemingly  ideal  heads  are  not  infrequent  (PI. 
XV,  19;  XVI,  11). 

Among  the  representations  of  deities,  Aphrodite  ( PI.  XIV, 
11;  XV,  4,  8,  12?)  and  Dionysos  (PI.  XIV,  6,  13)  are  by 
far  the  commonest,  generally  as  single  figures  and  in  reposeful 
attitudes.  Usually  the  former  is  half  draped,  with  the  upper 
part  of  the  body  nude.  Eros,  in  many  attitudes  and,  now,  for 
the  first  time,  often  pictured  as  a  chubby  child,  is  represented 
with  her  (PI.  XIV,  11 ;  XV,  4,  8),  and  a  practically  new  develop¬ 
ment  is  found  in  pictures  of  the  Psyche  myth  from  the  dialogue 
of  Plato.  She  is  generally  shown  as  a  maiden  without  wings 
but  often,  also,  symbolically,  as  a  butterfly  captured  or  even 
ridden  by  Eros.  Occasionally  he  is  singeing  her  with  his  torch. 
A  few  pictures  suggest  cult  scenes  (PI.  XV,  5,  13).  Hermaph¬ 
rodites  are  common,  as  are  the  mainad  (PI.  XIV,  9)  and  the 
youthful  satyr  (PI.  XVI,  13),  the  last,  also,  a  new  conception  of 
this  epoch. 

Many  deities  were  now  beginning  to  be  world-wide,  and 
foreign  cults  were  more  affected.  Serapis  (PI.  XV,  15;  XVI, 
12)  and  Isis  (PI.  XV,  11)  are  common,  more  or  less  Hellenized. 
Harpokrates  is  found  (PI.  XV,  17) ;  Apollo  appears  of  course 
(PI.  XIV,  5,  8) ;  Artemis,  with  tunic  to  her  feet  (PI.  XIV,  4), 
sometimes  with  the  attribute  of  Tyche,  a  horn  of  plenty,  and 
Agathe-Tyche,  half  nude,  with  the  cornucopia  ( PI.  XIV,  12 ) , 
Hermes  binding  on  his  sandal,  Athena  (PI.  XIV,  2,  14) 
and  Kore.  A  river-god,  swimming,  is  commonest  among  the 
lesser  divinities,  and  also  the  nymph,  Galene  (PI.  XV,  10), 
Okeanos  (Oceanus),  and  other  allegorical  conceptions  of  the 
nature  myths,  as  which  the  cultured  mind  of  the  period  had 
now  begun  to  regard  much  of  its  theology,  Pegasos  is  purely 
decorative  and  the  few  demons  found  are  apt  to  represent 
nature  elements. 

The  heroes  are  now  rare.  Even  of  Herakles  only  the  head 
is  apt  to  be  represented  and  that  as  of  a  young  man  or  even 


SUBJECTS 


81 


a  child  (PI.  XV,  18).  The  reverence  for  purely  heroic  deeds 
had  vanished  and  the  comparative  popularity  of  Odysseus  ( PI: 
XIV,  10)  seems  to  indicate  the  growth  of  statecraft  and  trick¬ 
ery  as  the  more  acceptable  ideals. 

Pictures  from  everyday  life  are  not  as  common  as  might  be 
expected.  Nude  or  half  nude  female  figures  in  Aphroditesque 
poses  occur  (PI.  XIV,  7 ;  XV,  12),  the  lion-hunt  is  not  unusual, 
and  we  find  chariots,  several  processions  of  horsemen,  a  return 
from  the  hunt  (PI.  XV,  16)  and  a  banquet  scene  (PI.  XV,  1). 
Neither  are  idyllic  pictures  especially  in  evidence.  There  are  a 
few  that  represent  rural  scenes :  ploughing,  animals,  etc.  Sug¬ 
gestions  of  the  world  of  philosophy  appear,  such  as  the  picture 
of  the  seven  wise  men  inspecting  the  terrestrial  globe,  and  of 
literature,  in  the  combat  between  a  crane  and  a  pigmy.  Kelts 
are  sometimes  portrayed,  and,  of  course,  female  figures,  sitting, 
walking,  playing  on  instruments,  dancing,  etc.  As  in  the  best 
epoch  there  are  few  obscene  motives.  One  picture  of  a  serpent 
may  suggest  the  phallic  idea. 

Along  with  these  subjects  there  were,  doubtless,  also,  a 
great  number  of  cheaper  seals  for  poorer  wearers  on  which 
were  represented  a  head,  an  animal  (PI.  XV,  20),  a  mask,  a 
helmet  (PI.  XV,  9),  or  some  one  of  the  many  attributes  or 
symbols  even  more  popular  in  later  times.  There  were  thunder¬ 
bolts,  caducei,  sometimes  winged,  horns  of  plenty,  flowers,  wheat- 
ears,  vases,  utensils  of  all  kinds  and  other  devices  of  similar 
character  or  significance.  Many  of  these  unquestionably  were 
adopted  as  luck-bringing,  others  seem  purely  decorative,  but 
Dr.  Furtwangler  admits  his  utter  inability  to  place  their  dates 
even  as  closely  as  those  of  the  more  characteristic  designs,  or, 
for  that  matter,  to  distinguish  them  with  any  degree  of 
certainty  from  the  great  mass  of  similar  representations  which 
belong  to  the  Graeco-Roman  period  of  the  early  Empire. 

Inscriptions  and  Artists. — The  names  of  owners  are, 
naturally,  by  far  the  commonest  inscriptions  on  these  gems, 
often  abbreviated,  but  we  have  also  the  names  of  several  artists, 
foremost  of  whom  is  Lykomedes  (AYKOMHAH^)  on  a  beauti¬ 
ful  portrait  of  an  Egyptian  princess,  probably  Berenike  I, 


82 


HELLENISTIC  PERIOD 


with  the  attributes  of  Isis.  Nikandros  signs  a  female  portrait 
bust,  probably  of  Berenike  I  or  Arsinoe  II,  with  NIKANAPOC 
CrOCI,  Pheidias,  a  picture  of  a  youth  with  one  leg  raised 
(ICIAIA2  CPOCI)  (PI.  XV,  14),  and  Gelon,  an  Aphrodite  with 
FCA-N  CPoCI  in  two  lines.  Sosis  is  credited  by  Dr.  Furt- 
wiingler  with  a  large  and  very  fine  gem  picture  of  Herakles 
killing  a  centaur,  signed  EI10IEI,  but  I  confess  myself 

unable  to  feel  quite  satisfied  as  to  its  genuineness.  The  name  of 
Philon  is  only  known  from  a  portrait  head  engraved  in  the 
metal  of  a  silver  finger-ring.  That  he  also  cut  in  stone  can  be 
only  inferred.  The  signature  reads  IIAQN  ET10EI. 

In  the  second  century  B.  C.  we  have  Agathopous,  with  a 
portrait  head  signed  APAOOnOYC  £F"10€  I?  and  another  name, 
known  only  from  a  signature  in  metal:  Herakleidas,  whose 
...AKAEIAACCPOCI  appears  with  a  portrait  head  engraved  on  a 
gold  ring.  Furtwangler  places  him  as  a  Dorian  of  Sicily  or 
southern  Italy.  At  the  end  of  the  period  we  find  Onesas 
thoroughly  authenticated  according  to  the  same  authority  by 
the  ONECAC  €110,  inscribed  in  two  lines  on  an  Athena  (PI. 
XIV,  14),  the  ONHCAC  EP10IEI,  also  in  two  lines,  on  the  glass 
paste  showing  a  muse  with  a  lyre  and  the  ONHCAC  with  the 
head  of  a  youthful  Herakles.  There  is  no  doubt  as  to  the 
genuineness  of  all  three  gems,  and  the  signatures,  also,  are 
probably  authentic. 

Of  others,  the  portrait  gem  signed,  AAIAAA05,  now  at 
Paris,  seems  to  be  generally  accepted  as  bearing  an  artist’s 
signature.  I  have  not  seen  it  and,  therefore,  have  no  right  to 
an  adverse  opinion,  but  theories  are  queer  things,  and  the  gem 
is  a  portrait,  the  signature  in  the  nominative,  and  without  the 
8JT0L81.  Furtwangler  places  Daidalos  definitely  in  the  third 
century.  The  two  gems  which  he  attributes  to  Skopas,  perhaps 
influenced  somewhat  by  there  being  two  with  the  same  name, 
are  the  portrait  head  signed,  EKOflAS,?  and  the  nude  female 
figure  signed,  SKDTTA  (PI.  XIV,  7).  Still,  neither  the  name- 
forms  nor  the  letterings  correspond,  there  is  no  ejroiei  in 
either  and  Skopas  was  not  so  rare  a  name  as  to  make  unlikely 
its  belonging  to  two  owners  of  signets  or,  if  you  please,  to  an 


INSCRIPTIONS  AND  ARTISTS 


83 


owner  and  to  an  artist.  Of  Apollonios,  as  given  on  the  strength 
of  the  portrait  head  with  the  name,  A P  0 A  AQ  N 1  • 1 ,  in  the  genitive, 
I  cannot  feel  that  his  identity  as  an  artist  is  absolutely  estab¬ 
lished  as  against  the  owner  hypothesis,  though  it  seems 
probable. 

Furtwangler  places  Boethos  in  the  Hellenistic  Age,  on  the 
strength  of  the  cameo  showing  Philoktetes  fanning  his  wounded 
leg  and  signed,  BOHOOY.  Gem  and  signature  are  unquestion¬ 
ably  genuine.  Pausanias,  Cicero  and  Pliny  all  tell  of  a  Boethos 
who  seems  to  have  been  a  native  of  Chalkedon  and  was  a  fa¬ 
mous  silver-chaser  early  in  the  third  century  B.  C.  They  do 
not  speak  of  him  as  engraving  gems,  but  that  he  did  such  work, 
too,  is  a  reasonable  supposition,  especially  if  the  report  be 
accurate  of  the  bronze  Herm  of  Dionysos,  signed  by  him,  re¬ 
cently  found  in  the  sunken  galley  which  the  French  have  dis¬ 
covered  off  the  coast  of  Tunis. 

Athenion  and  Protarchos  are  also  dated  in  this  epoch ; 
the  former  on  the  strength  of  one  cameo,  the  latter  of  two. 
They  seem  to  be  late  Hellenistic,  though  Athenion  has  also  been 
placed  as  Augustan. 


CHAPTER  VI 

MIDDLE  ITALIAN  GEMS  OF  THE  ROMAN  REPUBLIC 

Just  when  the  Romans  began  to  use  gems  for  their  signets 
cannot  be  exactly  placed.  While  the  early  citizen  was  influenced 
by  and  the  later  affected  a  republican  simplicity,  yet  they  never 
scorned  to  copy  good  things  from  their  neighbors,  and  they 
had  neighbors  on  both  sides  with  whom  the  custom  had  been 
long  standing.  Therefore  it  was  that  some  of  them  who  had  had 
the  advantages  of  foreign  intercourse  and  absorbed  a  measure 
of  foreign  culture  and  taste  took  up  this  form  of  art,  at  least 
as  early  as  the  middle  of  the  third  century  B.  C.  It  is  true 
they  had  rather  looked  down  upon  the  conquered  Etruscans  as 
luxury  loving  and  dissolute,  but  they  could  not  fail  to  recognize 
the  art  superiority  of  the  Greeks  of  the  South,  and  they  had 
good  reason  to  know  that  there  was  nothing  contemptible 
about  the  prowess  of  gem- wearing  Carthage.  We  know  that 
the  earliest  Roman  signets  were  cut  in  the  metal  of  their  rings, 
but  it  would  have  been  interesting  had  Livy  or  Florus  told  us 
more  about  the  vast  number  of  gold  rings,  one  to  three  measures 
of  doubtful  dimensions,  taken  from  the  Roman  dead  at  Cannae 
and  sent  by  Hannibal  to  Carthage  as  an  evidence  of  the  great¬ 
ness  of  the  slaughter,  since  gold  could  only  be  worn  by  men 
of  a  certain  rank.  The  women  seem  to  have  been  allowed 
greater  liberty  in  this  respect.  Florus  says  “rings,”  Livy,  “rings 
of  gold,”  but  neither  speaks  of  the  gems  with  which  at  that 
time  it  is  certain  that  many  of  these  must  have  been  set.  The 
story  of  Marcellus’  ring,  told  by  Livy,  shows  that  Roman 
consuls  had  such  signets  and  that  the  devices  on  them  were 
well  known.  Even  at  an  early  time  it  is  hard  to  imagine  that 
the  Etruscan  export  trade  circled  all  around  the  growing  Re¬ 
public  and  did  not  cross  its  borders. 

84 


EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS— ETRUSCAN  INFLUENCE  85 


Presumptively,  however,  it  is  in  the  third  century  B.  C. 
that  we  begin  to  find  work  that  indicates  a  national  demand 
and  manufacture  along  the  lines  of  a  national  taste.  This  was, 
doubtless,  initially  supplied  by  artists  from  the  North  and 
South.  A  few  of  the  earlier  stones  are  scarabs  (the  scaraboid 
was  never  very  common  in  the  western  Greek  world),  but 
nearly  all  are  ring-stones,  and,  for  that  reason,  it  is  only  com¬ 
paratively  recently  that  they  have  been  distinguished  from  the 
gems  of  a  later  period.  Furtwangler  speaks  of  them  as  “drier, 
more  labored,  and  poorer”  than  Hellenistic  work  of  the  same 
time,  but  most  students  may  find  it  difficult  to  apply  such 
criteria  with  any  satisfactory  certainty,  especially  as,  doubtless, 
the  majority  of  true  Hellenistic  intaglios  wrere  “dry,”  “labored” 
or  “poor.”  It  is  the  subjects  and  also  the  inscriptions  on  many 
of  those  that  bear  them,  upon  which  the  less  technically  trained 
connoisseur  must  rely  for  identification  and,  in  connection  with 
such  features,  workmanship,  material,  shape,  details,  and  pro¬ 
venance,  where  it  is  known,  may  be  corroborative  elements  in 
deciding. 

These  gems  were  the  signets  of  the  Romans  and  of  the 
Romanized  Italians  of  the  period  from,  say,  the  third  century 
to  the  beginning  of  the  principiate  of  Augustus,  31  B.  C.  With 
the  death  of  Etruscan  gem-engraving  as  an  independent 
industry  and  a  revival  of  the  art  under  the  less  cultured 
auspices  of  the  new  masters  of  Etruria,  there  must  of  necessity 
be  found  an  initial  retrogression,  a  comparative  lack  of  fine 
work  and  artistic  appreciation.  The  Italian  cared  nothing 
for  the  scarab.  He  wanted  simply  a  signet,  and  the  Etruscan 
engraver  and  his  pupils  turned  their  attention  to  supplying  the 
first  demand,  until  the  Greek  and  the  Hellenized  Roman  elbowed 
them  out. 

As  might  be  expected,  we  find  two  distinct  influences  gov¬ 
erning  early  Roman  glyptic  art :  that  of  the  Etruscans  of  the 
North  and  that  of  the  Greeks  from  the  South,  and,  since  the 
wrork  fell  under  these  influences,  these  gems  have  been  divided 
accordingly  into  two  classes. 

First,  then,  the  Etruscan  influence  went,  at  the  beginning, 


86  EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS— ETRUSCAN  INFLUENCE 


to  produce,  as  I  have  said,  a  few  scarabs,  mostly  of  the  long 
drawn  out  shape  characteristic  of  many  late  Etruscan  gems. 
Even  the  ring-stones  are  apt  to  show  scarab  characteristics, 
being  flat,  often  lengthened,  ovals,  entirely  filled  by  the  picture 
which  is  usually  surrounded  by  the  cable,  sometimes  by  the 
dotted  border.  A  few  are  squarish  with  rounded  corners  and 
nearly  always  with  a  border.  The  figures  often  stand  on  a  base 
line  with  the  exergue  occasionally  filled  with  lines  or  points. 
Convex  picture  surfaces  are  rare  in  this  group.  These  are, 
of  course,  borderless. 

Materials. — The  popular  materials  in  this  group  were, 
first,  the  agate  or  sardonyx  cut  across  the  layers,  next  the 
carnelian,  chalcedony  and  a  few  dark  sards.  There  is  a  single 
example  of  the  aquamarine  and  a  very  few  of  the  nicolo  so 
popular  in  Roman  imperial  times.  The  early  Roman  scarabs 
are  all  of  banded  sardonyx  or  agate,  with  a  few  carnelians  and 
a  single  example  of  the  plasma,  unique,  also,  in  having  a  convex 
picture  surface,  but  which  may  be  of  a  later  date. 

Among  the  pastes  which  were  very  common  and  go  to  show 
a  wide  taste  for  gem  seals  among  poorer  people  who,  doubtless, 
wore  them  set  in  iron  rings,  we  find  imitations  of  the  fashionable 
stones,  the  sardonyx  and  agate  with  a  band  of  white  across  the 
red,  brown  or  black,  also  the  nicolo.  The  violet  with  a  white 
stripe  was  a  purely  original  idea,  made  in  imitation  of  no  stone, 
and,  like  it,  is  a  light  green  paste  with  a  dark  blue  band 
bordered  by  two  white  stripes  which  seems  to  have  been  popular 
in  the  first  century  B.  C.  Carnelian  was  poorly  and  only  rarely 
imitated,  but  the  dark  sard,  often  verging  into  brown,  was 
easily  made  and  by  far  the  commonest  of  all.  Violet  paste 
also  was  easy  to  make  and  common,  although  the  amethyst  was 
not  a  stone  engraved  in  Italy  at  this  time.  Blue  paste,  too, 
was  much  used,  but  the  white  and  green,  so  popular  in  Greece, 
was  rare.  Naturally  the  pastes  we  find  are,  as  a  rule,  much 
worn  and  corroded. 

The  pictures  on  these  artificial  gems  were,  as  might  be 
expected,  copies  of  the  best  of  those  on  the  real  stones,  got  by 
taking  impressions  which  were  afterward  carefully  worked  out 


TECHNIQUE 


87 


as  to  details,  often  with  the  wheel,  and,  finally,  well  polished. 
In  the  cheapest  examples,  little  if  any  finishing  was  done,  and 
in  some  the  rim  and  back  are  rough  as  if  they  had  not  left  the 
maker  who  had  waited  in  vain  for  a  purchaser  before  finishing 
his  product  and  adding  such  inscription  as  might  be  desired. 
Through  the  first  century  B.  C.  the  numbers  of  pastes  reached 
their  highest  point. 

Technique. — The  engraving  may  be  said  to  be  characterized 
by  a  certain  superficial  cleverness  and  lacks  development.  They 
wavered  somewhat  between  styles  but  their  most  persistent 
trait  is  a  preference  for  the  severe  characteristics  of  the  best 
Etruscan  work,  sometimes  leading  to  archaic  imitations,  some¬ 
times  shown  only  by  a  certain  stiffness.  Of  course  they  fell 
behind  their  models.  The  relation  is  also  evident  in  the  bending 
of  the  bodies  and  in  the  cloak  following  the  back  in  a  curve 
(PI.  XVII,  9,  11,  14,  16,  18).  There  is  little  appreciation  of 
flesh  or  of  accuracy  in  handling  muscles.  The  archaic  treat¬ 
ment  of  stomach  muscles  in  three  folds  is  often  affected,  but 
roughly  and  unintelligently.  Also  there  is  the  preference  for 
beardless  faces,  but  the  heads  lack  character  and  definiteness. 
Though  there  seems  to  be  little  artistic  feeling  but  rather 
dependent  imitativeness,  there  are  not  lacking  examples  of  good 
workmanship  where  all  the  details  are  well  treated  (PI.  XVII, 
8,  23).  Probably  early  in  the  period  is  a  small  group  dis¬ 
tinguished  by  soft  plumpness  and  thick  heads,  shown,  often, 
in  full  face  (PI.  XVII,  7,  25)  and,  at  the  end,  ai  group,  almost 
always  on  banded  sardonyx  or  agate,  which  show  only  a  single 
figure  with  considerable  unoccupied  background  (PI.  XVII, 
20),  dry  and  uninspired,  with  stiff,  coarse  treatment  of  garments 
and  the  hair  done  archaically  in  a  roll.  Their  subjects  are 
taken  from  the  late  Hellenistic  cycle  and,  of  course,  there  is 
a  growing  tendency  to  approach  the  second  group  of  Italian 
gems  which  we  will  consider  later. 

Drill  holes  and  sharp  lines  were  combined  on  the  same 
stone,  and  hair  and  beards  were  very  commonly  represented 
by  cut  lines  with  little  drill  holes  at  the  ends.  Often  a  staff 
or  some  similar  line  is  made  up  entirely  of  drill  holes  ( See  PI. 


88  EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS— ETRUSCAN  INFLUENCE 


XVIII,  8).  We  also  find  on  these  gems  a  certain  treatment 
of  the  hair  at  the  back  of  the  neck  found  on  no  other  class  of 
stones  save  a  few  scarabs;  a  bound  together  mass  of  long, 
parallel  strokes  (Pi.  XVII,  7).  Sometimes  it  is  shorter,  round¬ 
er  and  more  natural  (PI.  XVII,  9,  20).  The  hair  in  front  is, 
also,  often  done  with  parallel  lines,  while  the  hair  band  is  a 
line  of  little  drill  holes  (PI.  XVII,  18).  Also  there  is  the  rolled 
hair  treatment,  especially  on  the  later  stones  spoken  of  above 
'(PI.  XVII,  20,  23).  The  severe  treatment  of  the  legs,  one  facing 
and  one  in  profile,  is  not  rare  (PI.  XVII,  2,  3,  6,  10,  25),  and, 
sometimes,  even,  a  foot  in  full  front  is  attached  stupidly  to 
a  leg  in  profile. 

The  work  on  these  gems  can  in  no  way  be  connected  with 
that  on  the  coinage  of  the  period  which  shows  a  free  style 
without  severe  characteristics.  Only  the  hair  on  the  Janus 
head  on  the  ses  of  268  B.  C.  suggests  them.  All  in  all,  they 
seem  to  represent  a  distinct  development  of  Roman  ideals, 
adopting,  on  the  one  hand,  the  severity  of  old  Etruscan  art 
and,  on  the  other,  expressing  seriously  in  it  the  warlike  national 
thought  and  ancient  religious  beliefs.  Furtwangler  regards 
them  as  the  seals  of  the  old  Roman  party  that  frowned  upon 
Greek  innovations  and  the  lure  of  Greek  art. 

Subjects. — The  greater  gods  are  rare,  an  omission 
upon  which  some  light  may  be  thrown  by  the  opinion  of  the 
famous  jurist,  Ateius  Capito,  as  given  by  Macrobius,  which 
censures  wearing  a  god’s  figure  on  a  ring  on  the  score  of  the 
profanation  to  which  the  sacred  forms  were  thereby  exposed. 
This  seems  to  parallel  the  injunction  of  Pythagoras  cited  in 
an  earlier  chapter. 

The  subjects  that  do  appear  on  these  gems  may  be  divided 
generally  into  two  classes:  first,  pictures  from  the  hero-sagas 
which,  while  they  show  an  increasing  knowledge  of  Greek 
poetry,  are  yet  taken  primarily  from  the  Etruscan  adaptation 
of  the  ideas.  As  representing  the  warlike  deeds  of  semi¬ 
divine  warriors,  they  were  calculated  to  appeal  to  the  Roman 
of  the  period.  The  facts  that  the  Romans  believed  themselves 
to  be  descended  from  the  Trojan  stock  and  that  many  of  the 


SUBJECTS 


89 


Greek  heroes  of  the  siege  of  Troy  were  fabled  to  have  founded 
Italian  cities  explain  why  the  heroes  of  the  Trojan  cycle  were 
by  far  the  most  popular. 

Of  the  Theban  legends  we  find  Kadmos  or  one  of  his  com¬ 
panions  represented  as  a  youth  going  with  a  pitcher  to  the  well 
and,  again,  attacked  by  the  serpent  that  guarded  it;  also 
Kapaneus  falling  (PL  XVII,  4),  and  Oidipous  (CEdipus) 
before  the  Sphinx  (PL  XVII,  17),  sometimes  killing  it  as  a 
sacrifice  or,  again,  the  Sphinx  is  pictured  alone  or  seizing  a 
youth.  Other  heroes  are  Perseus  with  Medousa’s  head,  rarely 
Theseus,  still  more  rarely  Herakles,  and  there  are  also  Orestes 
and  Elektra  at  the  tomb  of  Agamemnon  or  Orestes  being  led 
up  for  sacrifice  to  the  Tauric  Artemis.  Orestes,  too,  is  probably 
pictured  killing  Klytaimnestra,  while  a  Fury  rising  from  the 
ground  attests  the  horror  of  the  matricide.  Bellerophon  is 
shown  with  the  winged  horse  Pegasos. 

Of  the  favored  Trojan  war  legends  there  is  Diomedes, 
alone  or  with  Odysseus,  stealing  the  Trojan  Palladium  and 
Diomedes  killing  Dolon;  Odysseus  fighting  beside  Aias  (Ajax) 
or  aiding  him  to  protect  a  fallen  hero,  probably  Achilleus, 
inspecting  Achilleus’  arms,  being  recognized  by  his  dog,  Argos, 
or  ploughing  while  Palamedes  lays  his  child  before  him  in  the 
furrow.  That  Telegonos,  son  of  Odysseus,  was  fabled  to  have 
founded  Tusculum,  and  that  the  Roman  family  of  the  Mamilii 
traced  their  descent  from  him  go  to  explain  this  popularity. 
Ajax  also  is  found  on  many  gems,  especially,  as  in  the  old 
Greek  group,  bearing  the  body  of  Achilleus  on  his  back  (PL 
XVII,  13),  also,  on  a  ship’s  prow,  fighting  beside  his  archer 
brother,  Teukros,  or  holding  in  his  hand  the  arrow  that  has 
slain  Achilleus.  Achilleus  appears  playing  the  lyre,  sometimes 
under  the  teaching  of  Cheiron  (Pl.  XVII,  3),  killing  captives 
at  the  tomb  of  Patroklos,  fighting  Penthesileia  or  other 
Amazons  or  with  the  arrow  in  his  heel.  The  fight  over  the  body 
of  Patroklos  is  also  pictured,  the  parting  of  Hektor  and  Andro¬ 
mache,  Hector’s  body  trailed  behind  Achilleus’  chariot, 
Priamos  before  Achilleus  recovering  Hector’s  body,  or,  together 
with  Hermes,  bringing  it  home,  Machaon  dressing  a  wound, 


90  EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS— ETRUSCAN  INFLUENCE 


perhaps  of  Philoktetes  (See  PI.  XXV,  17),  and  many  wounded 
heroes,  heroes  in  camp,  arming,  and,  occasionally,  fighting,  who 
cannot  be  satisfactorily  identified.  When  a  woman  is  helping 
arm  a  hero  it  may  be  Thetis  and  Achilleus  or  Hector  and 
Andromache.  Philoktetes,  who  was  fabled  to  have  founded 
Petelia,  a  city  always  faithful  to  the  Roman  alliance,  appears 
in  many  attitudes  such  as  bending  the  bow  of  Herakles,  bitten 
by  the  serpent  or  trying  to  escape  from  it,  but  most  commonly, 
abandoned  on  the  island,  either  seated  and  fanning  the  flies 
from  his  wounded  leg  with  a  bird’s  wing,  supporting  himself 
with  a  staff  or  dragging  himself  along.  Laokoon  and  his  sons 
attacked  by  the  serpents  (PI.  XVII,  6)  is  one  of  the  most 
interesting  types  of  this  series.  In  fact,  what  has  been  said 
about  the  Etruscan  hero  pictures  applies  pretty  generally  as 
to  the  scope  of  these  gems. 

Of  course  a  good  many  of  the  unidentified  pictures  may 
be  merely  warrior  figures  with  no  heroic  or  personal  attribu¬ 
tion.  The  numerous  examples  of  a  mounted  warrior  or  a 
warrior  leading  a  horse,  for  instance  (PI.  XVII,  2),  can  hardly 
be  taken  from  the  Greek  sagas.  Many  of  the  types  are  repre¬ 
sented  as  armed  only  with  shield,  helmet  and,  perhaps,  greaves, 
as  the  Greeks  showed  them  (PI.  XVII,  4,  5,  12,  24).  Others 
wear  a  full  panoply  (PI.  XVII,  2,  13)  or  the  adorned  armor 
and  the  peculiar  corselet  with  the  skirt  cut  out  in  scallops 
that  denote  the  Italian  method  of  representation  (PI.  XVII,  8). 

A  warrior  seated  or  standing  with  a  head  or  helmet  of 
an  enemy  in  his  hand  is  a  favorite  picture  (PI.  XVII,  20)  and, 
sometimes,  the  headless  body  is  shown  or  the  warrior  stands 
on  his  dead  foe.  Occasionally  the  conqueror  is  stepping  on 
the  prow  of  a  ship,  and  there  are  groups  of  two  men,  one  hold¬ 
ing  the  head,  or,  perhaps,  one  or  two  men  cutting  a  body  in 
pieces.  The  prevalence  of  this  motive  would  seem  to  argue 
some  special  heroic  representation  but  there  is  a  suggestive¬ 
ness  in  the  frequent  absence  of  helmet  or  shield  and  in  the 
way  they  grade  off  into  pictures  that  are  evidently  of  religious 
ceremonies  involving  sacrifice,  a  meaning  which  is  especially 
apparent  where  an  altar,  the  sacrificial  knife  or  the  double- 


SUBJECTS 


91 


headed  ax  is  present.  The  idea  of  human  sacrifice  was  not 
foreign  to  most  of  the  old  Italian  cults,  and  the  upper  body 
of  a  youth  rising  from  an  altar  (PI.  XVII,  18)  or  two  youths 
kneeling  before  one,  both  found  on  these  gems,  may  relate  to 
such  ceremonies.  Altogether  the  meaning  of  the  hero  and  head 
pictures  has  never  been  satisfactorily  explained. 

Returning  for  a  moment  to  less  usual  hero  types,  there  is  a 
not  infrequent  representation  of  a  dying  hero  writing  on  a  shield 
(PI.  XVII,  5).  Sometimes  dead  enemies  are  shown  beside  him, 
sometimes  only  their  arms.  The  picture  probably  refers  to  some 
poem  which  tells  of  the  exploit  of  the  Spartan  Orthryades  who, 
alone  surviving  in  the  battle  with  the  Argives  at  Thyrea  of 
which  Herodotos  tells,  used  his  expiring  strength  thus  to  record 
his  victory.  Of  Roman  heroes  we  have  a  gem  with  probably 
a  representation  of  the  three  Horatii,  in  Italian  armor,  from 
the  epic  of  Ennius,  and  frequent  pictures  of  some  Italian  hero 
kneeling  with  a  drawn  sword  (PI.  XVII,  8),  which  Furtwiing- 
ler  tries  to  explain  but  most  unsatisfactorily.  Were  it  meant 
for  Decius  Mus,  as  he  suggests,  we  should  probably  find  some 
indication  of  the  cincture  Gabinus,  as  being  vital  to  the  story. 
The  not  uncommon  pictures  of  Mucius  Scsevola  are  generally 
modern  but  I  have  seen  one,  possibly  of  later  date  than  these 
early  Roman  gems,  which  seems  to  be  genuine. 

There  are  also  many  pictures  of  heroes  or  minor  deities 
engaged  in  magic  work  of  some  kind.  Daidalos,  who  was  closely 
connected  with  the  Apollo  cult  of  Kume,  where  he  built  a 
temple  to  Apollo  and  consecrated  his  wings,  is  shown  with 
Ikaros.  Prometheus  is  a  favorite  gem  figure  and  is  shown  with 
sceptre,  knife  or  measuring  rod  working  at  the  figure  of  a  man 
(PI.  XVII,  14).  Sometimes  a  horse  or  ram  is  standing  near, 
watching  the  miracle  that  is  to  conquer  them.  The  Prometheus 
creator  legend  was  current  in  the  Orphic  and  Pythagorean 
cults,  once  very  strong  in  Italy.  Also  there  are  other  figures 
of  artificers,  perhaps  of  magic-working  smiths,  perhaps 
Cyclopes  or  Kabeiroi  but  more  probably  Daktyloi,  working 
over  arms  or  metal  urns  of  some  kind.  The  fact  that  Orpheus 
was  a  pupil  of  the  Idaian  Daktyloi  is  suggestive  in  this  con- 


92  EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS— ETRUSCAN  INFLUENCE 


nection.  Shipbuilder  types,  sitting  or  standing,  are  also  common 
(PL  XVII,  16),  and  suggest  Argos  working  on  the  Argo. 

Of  hero-sacerdotal  types  we  find  the  frequent  picture  of 
a  hero  consulting  an  oracle  where  a  woodpecker,  sacred  to 
Mars,  perches  on  a  column  and  answers  him.  Snakes  twining 
around  the  column  indicate  the  power  of  divination,  and  a 
ram,  also  sacred  to  Mars,  is  often  shown  as  the  sacrificial 
animal  (PI.  XVII,  12).  In  another  type  there  is  no  column 
or  woodpecker;  the  ram’s  head  lies  on  the  altar  and  the  hide 
hangs  on  a  tree  around  which  the  serpent  twines.  Many  pic¬ 
tures  represent  oracular  divinations,  especially  those  which 
show  several  heroes  drawing  lots  from  an  urn  or,  perhaps, 
where  an  ox  is  being  offered  for  sacrifice  by  warriors  or  a  priest 
(Pl.  XVII,  25). 

Sacerdotal  and  purification  scenes  are  also  common,  such 
as  one  where  a  bald  priest,  perhaps  the  Rex  Nemorensis,  holds  a 
branch  over  an  altar  while  two  men  approach,  one  where  a 
man  holds  a  sacrificial  bowl  or  a  censer  before  an  altar  (Pl. 
XVII,  21),  is  leading  up  a  goat,  killing  a  dove,  holding  a  sacri¬ 
ficial  knife  and  a  goat’s  head  (PL  XVII,  10),  or  laying  a  bough 
on  the  altar.  Perhaps  a  picture  of  a  mourning  youth,  with  a 
vase,  standing  near  a  column  may  be  classed  with  these,  and 
interesting  guesses  may  often  be  hazarded  as  to  the  scene  or 
cult  intended  to  be  represented. 

Also  among  the  sacerdotal  pictures  of  worship  are  the 
many  showing  single  figures  standing  before  an  altar,  adoring 
an  idol,  a  Herm  or  the  genius  of  some  place  represented  as  a 
serpent,  and  of  Roman  cult  characters,  the  augur  with  his 
lituus  (Pl.  XVII,  19),  a  pullarius  with  a  sacred  fowl,  busts 
of  priests  with  pointed  caps  (PL  XVII,  19),  such  as  the  pon¬ 
tiffs  wore  and,  most  interesting  of  all,  the  Salii  carrying  the 
sacred  shields  (Pl.  XVII,  1)  or  dancing. 

The  cult  of  Diana  Nemorensis  is  undoubtedly  evidenced 
in  a  clothed  female  figure,  with  a  stag,  standing  by  an  altar 
and  holding,  generally,  a  bough  in  one  hand  and  a  dish  of  fruit 
in  the  other.  A  later  picture  of  the  same  character  equips  the 
goddess  with  the  bow  according  to  the  Greek  idea  (Pl.  XIX,  2), 


SUBJECTS 


93 


and  the  youth  about  to  sacrifice  a  stag  on  an  altar  (PL  XVII, 
9)  may  be  Virbius,  her  first  priest,  in  whom  the  Italians  saw 
Hyppolitos.  Probably  this  personage  was  a  development  of 
an  original  Dianus,  the  male  counterpart  of  the  local  deity 
whom  time  had  relegated  to  an  inferior  position. 

An  interesting  group  of  these  cult  pictures  represent  a 
head  rising  from  the  ground,  apparently  in  response  to  some 
magical  invocation  made  in  order  to  obtain  oracular  advice 
or  information  (PL  XVII,  22).  Sometimes  they  do  not  preclude 
the  idea  of  a  body  below  the  ground,  still  attached,  but  often 
the  head  is  evidently  severed.  Generally  it  is  unbearded. 
Usually  the  listener  is  writing  down  the  response  and,  occasion¬ 
ally,  there  are  two  or  even  three  of  these.  Neither  Tages,  the 
mysterious  dwarf  of  the  old  Etruscan  myth  whose  body  would, 
be  shown  at  least  in  part,  and  who  could,  therefore,  be  the 
subject  in  only  a  few  of  the  pictures,  nor  the  head  ploughed  up 
on  the  site  of  the  Capitol,  which  did  not  speak,  can  be  intended, 
since  it  is  quite  evident  that  one  purpose  inspires  the  entire 
series.  Furtwiingler  seems  to  have  solved  the  problem.  He 
holds  that  it  is  the  head  of  Orpheus  fabled  to  be  kept  near 
Antissa  in  Lesbos,  where  it  uttered  the  oracles  of  Apollo.  These 
gems  would  thus  be  signets  of  members  of  the  Orphic  cult. 
Akin,  perhaps,  are  the  pictures  that  show  a  peasant  or  several 
peasants  finding  a  skull  (Pl.  XVII,  15),  often  with  a  butterfly 
floating  over  it. 

Many  gems  have  reference  to  the  raising  of  the  dead,  the 
crowning  magic  of  all  times.  Some  have  to  do  with  the  harvest 
mysteries  which  underlie  the  old  grain-god  myth,  such  as  those 
that  show  a  man  sowing  while  Proserpina  rises  from  the  ground 
with  an  ear  of  corn.  Others  picture,  probably,  some  form  of 
the  story  of  Polyeidos  drawing  Glaukos,  son  of  Minos,  from 
the  honey  jar  in  which  he  was  smothered.  Hermes  Psycho- 
pompos  is  the  recognized  prototype  of  the  belief  in  resurrection 
from  the  Orphic  and  Pythagorean  standpoints,  cults  that 
appealed  powerfully  to  the  typical  Romans  of  the  third  and 
second  centuries,  as  that  of  Bacchus  repelled  them.  Thus 
Hermes  is  often  shown,  either  bearded  or  unbearded,  raising 


94  EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS— ETRUSCAN  INFLUENCE 


a  body  or  calling  it  up  through  the  ground  from  the  Under¬ 
world  (PL  XVII,  11).  Orphic  influence  is  also  evident  in  the 
frequency  of  the  peacock,  pictured  now,  as  later,  in  various 
combinations  (See  PL  XVIII,  13).  It  was  a  symbol,  in  that 
cult,  of  immortal  bliss,  and  was,  as  such,  taken  over  into 
Christian  mediaeval  art. 

A  purely  national  signet  is  found  in  the  pictures  of  the 
wolf  or  of  the  wolf  suckling  Romulus  and  Remus.  This,  natur¬ 
ally,  has  been  an  attractive  subject  to  forgers.  Where  the 
twins  are  included  and  the  wolf’s  head  is  not  turned  toward 
them,  there  is  ground  for  definite  suspicion,  as  the  type  is 
contrary  to  the  statue  forms  and  these  were  likely  to  be  fol¬ 
lowed.  In  the  group  now  at  Rome,  where  the  wolf  is  gazing 
fiercely,  as  if  at  some  foe,  the  figures  of  the  twins  were  added 
later,  and  ignorant  forgers  have  often  taken  it  as  their  model. 
With  the  wolf  and  twins  are  frequently  found  the  shepherd, 
Faustulus,  and  a  figure  or  bust  of  Mars  or  Roma  is  occasionally 
introduced  (See  Pl.  XXV,  3). 

It  may  be  gathered,  as  has  been  suggested,  that  the  class 
of  signets  we  are  now  considering  were,  for  the  most  part, 
those  worn  by  adherents  of  the  conservative  school  of  Roman 
thought — those  who,  despising  or  affecting  to  despise  the  frivoli¬ 
ties  and  even  the  culture  of  Greece,  clung  strongly  to  the  more 
serious  side  of  life  in  all  its  phases — ancient  tradition,  heroism, 
deep  religious  feeling,  and  all  that  went  to  make  up  the  early 
ideals  of  the  Republic.  Throughout  the  second  century  B.  C. 
the  conflict  was  on  between  these  and  the  adherents  of  Hellen¬ 
ism.  A  departure  from  the  Greek  and  Etruscan  gems  which 
showed  no  historical  pictures  is  found  in  the  occasional  adop¬ 
tion  by  Romans  of  scenes  from  or  devices  commemorative  of 
their  personal  or  family  histories.  Sulla’s  signet  representing 
the  surrender  of  Jugurtha  is  an  evidence  of  this  as  is  also  the 
signet  of  Q.  Cornelius  Lupus:  a  horse’s  head  and  two  Gallic 
shields,  which  probably  commemorated  the  victory  of  one  of 
his  kinsmen  over  the  Gauls,  either  C.  Cornelius  Cethegus  who 
defeated  the  Insubres  in  197  B.  C.,  or  P.  Cornelius  Scipio 
Nasica  who  beat  the  Boii  in  191.  Nevertheless,  most  historical 


INSCRIPTIONS 


95 


scenes  must  be  regarded  as  forgeries.  They  certainly  were 
highly  exceptional,  one  of  the  many  points  of  which  the  fabri¬ 
cators  were  ignorant. 

Also,  at  this  time  we  find,  perhaps,  the  first  example  of 
a  signet  showing  the  taste,  later  so  marked  at  Rome,  for  the 
luck-bringing  symbols  of  the  eastern  religions:  a  man  riding 
a  Capricornus  (Compare  PI.  XXVI,  29).  The  goat-fish  com¬ 
bination  was  originally  a  Babylonian  god-symbol  and  its 
appearance  here  wTas  probably  due  to  the  Chaldsean  astrologers 
who  must  have  done  a  thriving  business  in  Italy,  since  they 
became  of  sufficient  consequence  to  be  expelled  from  the  city 
by  a  special  law  in  138  B.  C.  The  great  popularity  of  Capri¬ 
cornus  at  a  later  period  is  explained  by  its  being  the  birth  sign 
of  Augustus. 

Rural  life  is  occasionally  exemplified  in  pictures  of  a 
shepherd  or  shepherds,  and  there  are  a  few  animals,  mainly 
horses  and  bulls.  Nearly  all  the  gems  of  this  class,  however, 
show  human  figures. 

Inscriptions. — With  the  exception  of  a  few  descriptive 
inscriptions  on  the  fourth  century  scarabs  which  may  be  of 
Etruscan  workmanship  and  the  legend  the  dying  hero  spoken 
of  above  is  writing  on  the  shield  (PI.  XVII,  5),  all  the  inscrip¬ 
tions  on  these  stones  refer  to  the  owners’  names.  Rarely  they 
are  engraved  in  Greek  letters  and,  sometimes,  even,  the  names 
are  translated  into  Greek  equivalents  (PI.  XVII,  21).  A 
unique  example  bears  an  Etruscan  inscription,  and  another, 
what  seems  to  be  a  Roman  name  in  Etruscan  letters,  but  the 
great  majority  of  the  names,  sometimes  even  those  of 
resident  Greeks,  are  in  coarse,  sprawling  Roman  letters,  like 
those  on  the  coinage  of  the  period  (PI.  XVII,  2,  10,  12),  gener¬ 
ally  much  abbreviated  and  abounding  in  the  ligatured  mono¬ 
grams  so  common  on  the  consular  denarii  (PI.  XVIII,  18).  The 
early  0  and  ,  open  at  the  bottom,  and  the  A  are  not  found  or 
the  b  which  wrent  out  about  200  B.  C.,  and  the  forms  of  the 
0,  A  and  L  go  to  prove  that  these  name  inscriptions  did  not 
begin  before  the  second  century.  P,  however,  is  P  or  (>,  which 


©0  EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS— HELLENISTIC  INFLUENCE 


continues  through  the  Republican  period.  As  for  artists,  there 
were  evidently  none  of  sufficient  note  for  the  owners  to  wish 
their  names  on  these  signets. 

The  second  class  of  early  Roman  gems  are  those  which 
show  they  were  made  under  the  Hellenic  influence  of  the  artists 
of  Magna  Grmcia,  many  of  whom  doubtless  gravitated  to  Rome 
with  the  demand  for  their  work.  While  it  is  altogether  impos¬ 
sible  to  distinguish  some  of  these  stones  from  purely  Hellenistic 
work  of  the  time,  inscriptions  and  general  characteristics 
help  to  place  many  as  Roman.  No  Etruscan  influence  shows 
in  them.  By  far  the  greatest  number  are  strongly  convex  in 
shape,  usually  broad  ovals  approaching  the  circular,  and  they 
lack  the  border.  Generally  speaking  they  do  not  seem 
to  date  back  as  far  as  the  earliest  of  the  other  group  and  prob¬ 
ably  the  first  of  them  should  not  be  placed  before  the  middle 
of  the  third  century  B.  C.  They  continued  steadily  to  increase 
in  popularity  as  the  others  decreased,  in  the  growth  of  Greek 
influence  and  Epicurean  philosophy  as  opposed  to  the  stoicism 
of  early  Roman  ideals. 

Materials. — Dark  sards,  more  easily  attainable  than  the 
finer  gems  then  popular  in  the  East,  were  the  favorite  stones 
and  some  of  these  run  almost  into  black.  Gray  chalcedonies 
and  carnelian  were  not  rare  and  occasional  amethysts  are 
found.  Glass  pastes  were  as  common  as  in  the  other  group, 
naturally  imitating,  as  a  rule,  the  dark  sards,  though  violet, 
white,  and  other  colors  also  occur. 

Technique. — Plastic  effects,  aided  by  the  convexity  which 
permitted  deeper  cutting,  are  in  evidence  in  rounded  forms 
standing  out  from  the  background.  Figures  and  busts  appear 
in  full  front  (PI.  XVIII,  10, 15,  22,  24)  with  clever  foreshorten¬ 
ing,  in  the  style  of  the  best  Hellenistic  art.  The  technical 
work  was  generally  much  better  than  in  the  other  class, 
though  there  were,  of  course,  many  poor  specimens  with  coarse 
strokes  and  drill  points  standing  together  roughly  and 
unjoined.  Some  even  approach  the  drill-work  Etruscan 
scarabs:  largely  animal  pictures,  with  feet,  joints,  noses,  etc. 
indicated  by  round  borings,  but  they  lack  their  dry  severity. 


SUBJECTS 


97 


The  taste  was  for  full,  heavy  forms,  and  the  heads  which  are 
especially  characteristic  are  generally  unbearded  and  youth¬ 
ful,  even  when  they  represent  older  types.  As  a  rule,  they  are 
neither  fine  nor  beautiful,  though,  later,  we  find  some  that, 
while  coarse  in  a  way,  are  serious  and  thoughtfully  conceived. 

Subjects. — As  would  be  expected,  there  is  a  sharp  line 
between  the  subjects  affected  by  these  Hellenizing  Romans  and 
by  the  adherents  of  the  more  sternly  national  party.  Heroes  and 
the  epic  cycles  have  little  place  here  and  the  old  cult  pictures 
are  lacking.  Herakles  is  the  commonest,  but  he  is  shown  as 
a  type  of  triumphant  might  rather  than  as  a  serious  creative 
hero.  He  is  found  strangling  serpents,  conquering  giants  or 
centaurs,  wrestling  with  Antaios  ( See  PI.  XXV,  19 ) ,  capturing 
Cerberus,  and  attacking  the  river-god,  Acheloos,  while,  in  more 
frivolous  vein  he  appears  playing  a  lyre,  drunken  and  even 
micturating  (PI.  XVIII,  1).  His  head  alone  and  that  of 
Omphale,  who  appears  for  the  first  time  in  this  period,  are  also 
pictured. 

Diomedes  and  Odysseus  (PI.  XVIII,  2)  are  commonest 
of  the  Trojan  War  cycle  and  there  is  Kassandra  with  the  Pal¬ 
ladium  (PI.  XVIII,  4)  and  Aineias  (iEneas)  carrying 
Anchises.  Perseus,  who  was  fabled  in  the  Latin  legend  to  have 
come  ashore  with  Danae  in  the  chest,  at  Ardea  in  Latium,  is 
shown  with  the  head  of  Medousa  and  also  as  a  bust  wearing 
the  dragon  helmet  of  Hades  which  made  its  wearer  invisible. 
Iphigeneia,  Orestes,  and  Marsyas  also  appear.  Of  Roman 
heroes  we  have  Marcus  Curtius  (PI.  XVIII,  3),  mounted  and 
plunging  into  the  chasm  in  the  Forum. 

Genre  warrior  types  are  not  unusual:  knights  on  horse¬ 
back,  sometimes  contending  with  Gauls  (PI.  XVIII,  6),  one 
carrying  away  a  maiden,  perhaps  a  Sabine,  and  a  Roman 
imperator  with  his  legates.  Hunters  on  foot  or  mounted  are 
also  pretty  common  and,  of  everyday  people,  shepherds  (PI. 
XVIII,  11),  peasants,  and  fishermen,  orators,  bankers,  ath¬ 
letes,  charioteers,  a  lady  with  her  slaves,  a  man  who  seems  to 
be  freezing,  and  philosophers  reading,  writing  or  teaching,  a 
natural  embodiment  of  Greek  tastes  becoming  popular  in  Rome. 


98  EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS— HELLENISTIC  INFLUENCE 


Of  deities  the  tendency  was  all  toward  the  cheerfulness  of 
the  cycles  of  Eros  and  Bacchus  (PI.  XVIII,  8).  The  former 
is  now  definitely  the  chubby  Cupid  of  Hellenistic  art,  and  his 
power  is  indicated  by  numerous  pictures  of  him  disarming, 
binding  and  even  riding  Herakles,  seated  on  the  terrestrial 
globe,  playing  with  the  thunderbolt  of  Jupiter  or  with  the 
rudder  of  Fortuna  or  holding  a  figure  of  Victory  in  his  hand. 
He  carries,  also,  bowls  of  fruit,  bunches  of  grapes,  wine  jars 
and  drinking  cups,  and  is  shown  dancing,  playing  the  lyre, 
hunting  his  way  with  a  lantern,  fishing  or  playing  with  ani¬ 
mals,  comic  masks  or  even  a  hoop  (PI.  XVIII,  9,  10).  Busts 
with  distended  cheeks,  a  beaker  and  a  wreath  are  characteristic. 
In  a  more  serious  way  he  is  represented  as  reading  a  book,  arm¬ 
ing  for  battle,  building  a  trophy  or  leaning,  wearied,  on  his  torch 
like  the  later  figures  of  Thanatos  (Compare  PI.  XXIV,  6  and 
9).  The  duel  between  Eros  and  Anteros  is  pictured,  and  the 
former  is  shown  catching  a  butterfly  or  singeing  it  with  his 
torch  (Compare  PI.  XXIX,  9),  or  bound  and  watched  by  a 
butterfly,  perhaps  Psyche.  Often  Aphrodite  appears  with  him 
bending  over,  at  her  toilet,  or  naked;  also  Psyche.  In 
short  it  would  be  impossible  to  say  that  any  form  of  representa¬ 
tion  on  the  above  lines  was  inconsistent  with  the  spirit  of  this 
group  of  gems. 

Bacchus  is  generally  beardless  and  shown  standing,  sitting, 
or  as  a  head  or  a  Herm.  Satyrs,  often  with  the  little  horns 
given  them  by  Hellenistic  art,  are  very  numerous.  Some  are 
dancing  (PI.  XVIII,  7),  and  there  are  also  mainads  and  a 
Seilenos  micturating.  Not  uncommonly  there  is  found  an 
obscene  picture  in  these  gems,  a  thing  quite  foreign  to  native 
Roman  or  the  best  Greek  taste. 

Of  other  gods,  Athena,  is  shown  with  many  attributes  as 
in  Hellenistic  art  or  seated  on  a  bench  with  lion’s  feet  as  on 
the  coins  of  Pergamos;  Kubele  (Cybele)  is  seated  on  her  lion, 
Artemis  occurs  and  Juno  with  her  peacock  or  sometimes  a 
peacock  head-dress.  Here  the  bird  is  introduced  merely  as  an 
attribute  of  the  goddess  and  has  no  relation  to  its  place  in  the 
Orphic  cults.  Isis  appears  in  her  Alexandrian  types,  marking 


SUBJECTS 


99 


the  growth  of  eastern  religions  ideas  in  Rome.  These  are  the 
most  usual.  Eros  and  the  young  Hermes  are  sometimes  shown 
as  Herms. 

Of  minor  deities  the  commonest  are  Victory,  nude  to  the 
waist  and  writing  on  a  shield  or  reading,  Fortuna  seated  on 
a  wheel,  a  rudder  or  a  Capricornus,  and  the  head  of  a  horned 
river-god  (PI.  XVIII,  24).  Libya  is  found  with  an  elephant’s 
hide  (PI.  XVIII,  23).  Muses  are  rather  common  figures  and 
the  heavenly  sphere  is  shown  with  them  for  the  first  time  (PI. 
XVIII,  5).  Especially  interesting  is  the  combination  of  types 
and  attributes,  such  as  Fortuna  with  Artemis  or  with  Nemesis, 
going  back  to  early  Greek  ideas,  and  Victory  with  Isis  (PI. 
XVIII,  22),  a  later  invention.  Greater  and  lesser  deities  are 
also  often  represented  by  heads  and  busts  alone  (PI.  XVIII, 
22—24). 

There  is  a  class  of  pictures  that  show  a  dwarf  or  gnome 
engaged  in  all  sorts  of  employments,  such  as  fishing,  ploughing, 
playing  the  flute  (PI.  XVIII,  19),  carrying  an  amphora  or  sit¬ 
ting  on  one  or  on  a  bird.  Probably  these  figures  are  not  meant 
to  be  merely  comic  but  represent  some  local  demon,  perhaps 
Campanian,  a  region  of  which  several  of  the  types  seem  charac¬ 
teristic  (Compare  PI.  XXVI,  29,  which  may  be  earlier  than  it 
is  placed,  and  fall  in  this  class).  More  definitely  luck-bringing 
seals,  akin  to  devices  on  many  Carthaginian  scarabs  from 
Sardinia  and  to  the  later  Roman  grylli,  are  such  mixed  figures 
as  a  man’s  head  and  an  eagle  (PI.  XVIII,  17),  an  eagle  with  a 
man’s  body  and  legs,  a  man  with  wings  and  a  goat’s  head, 
queer  combinations  of  birds,  which  seem  to  begin  along  the 
second  and  first  centuries,  and  of  a  man  and  an  insect,  an  ass’s 
head  rising  from  a  flower,  a  head  with  three  legs  ( PI.  XVIII, 18) , 
combined  man  and  animal  masks,  and  others  of  a  more  or  less 
kindred  character  (Compare  PI.  XIX,  17).  An  ant  attacking 
a  lion  (PI.  XVIII,  14)  may  be  purely  humorous.  On  many 
of  these  certain  symbols  are  added,  such  as  caducii,  cornu¬ 
copias,  etc.  and  it  is  very  evident  that  they  were  believed  to 
exert  power  as  amulets.  Altogether  the  spirit  of  grotesqueness 
is  represented  very  fully  and  in  many  different  forms. 


100  EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS— HELLENISTIC  INFLUENCE 


Stones  engraved  only  with  symbols  are  also  common. 
Some,  such  as  the  rudder  of  Fortuna,  the  club  of  Herakles  ( PI. 
XVIII,  12),  the  ear  of  wheat,  and  the  caduceus  were  probably 
thought  to  be  luck-bringing  (See  PI.  XIX,  7) ;  others,  like  the 
drinking  cup  and  the  staff,  the  shoe  (PL  XVIII,  16),  the  helmet 
or  weapons,  may  express  the  amusements  or  occupations  of  the 
wearers,  while  others  may  be  purely  ornamental  like  the  sun¬ 
dial  (PI.  XVIII,  20)  and  a  fountain  or  birds  in  a  garden.  It 
is  not  a  far  cry,  however,  to  put  the  sun-dial  pictures  in  the 
symbolic  class.  Even  street  scenes,  such  as  a  man  with  a  danc¬ 
ing  donkey,  are  found. 

Normal  animal  forms  are  common  and  are  often  very  well 
done ;  running  bulls,  butting  bulls,  as  on  the  coins  of  Thourioi, 
horses,  dogs,  goats,  swine,  roosters,  lions,  birds,  insects,  etc. 
(PL  XVIII,  12,  13,  14). 

A  peculiarly  characteristic  line  of  gems  of  this  class  are 
drawn  from  the  theatre.  Furtwangler  thinks  some  may  show 
figures  from  the  old  Oscan  buffooneries  or  Atellan  farces,  but 
it  was  from  Greece  that  the  legitimate  stage  finally  established 
itself  among  the  Romans,  and  these  gems  are,  as  a  rule,  dis¬ 
tinctively  Greek  in  their  representations.  Masks,  both  male 
and  female  (PL  XVIII,  21),  are  much  in  evidence,  and  comedy 
seems  to  be  favored  rather  than  tragedy,  both  in  the  masks  and 
in  the  figures.  Especially  there  is  the  omnipresent  slave  of 
Plautus,  with  a  fat  belly  and  a  short  coat  (Pl.  XVIII,  15), 
either  meditating  some  rascality,  chained  for  his  misdeeds, 
looking  at  a  broken  pitcher,  running,  taking  refuge  at  an  altar, 
quarreling,  dancing  or  with  an  amphora  or  a  lantern.  Like¬ 
wise  we  find  the  quarrelsome  old  man  of  the  comedies.  Some¬ 
times  the  players  appear  with  the  masks  pushed  back  or  in 
their  hands,  and  a  mask  that  seems  meant  to  have  certain 
characteristics  of  a  rooster  probably  indicated  some  lecherous 
character.  It  would  be  interesting  to  know  whether  M.  Rostand 
was  aware  of  this  suggestion  of  his  Chanticler  idea  in  early 
drama. 

Last,  among  the  great  variety  of  subjects  pictured  on 
this  class  of  gems  we  may  first  suspect  the  presence  of  lifelike 


INSCRIPTIONS 


101 


portrait  heads,  in  part  rough  and  coarse,  in  part  excellent 
though  never  so  fine  as  are  the  Hellenistic  or  later  Roman  por¬ 
traits  (See  PI.  XVIII,  25  and  description). 

Inscriptions. — Here,  no  more  than  on  the  gems  of  the 
Etruscan  school,  do  we  find  any  artists’  names.  Most  of  the 
inscriptions  indicate  the  names  of  the  owners  (PI.  XVIII,  2,  7, 
11,  12,  15,  18,  20),  commonly  much  abbreviated  or  ligatured 
(PI.  XVIII,  18),  usually  in  Latin  but  occasionally  in  Greek 
letters.  Both  run  to  coarse  forms,  unlike  the  dainty  lettering 
on  pure  Greek  stones.  The  Greek  letters  when  used  are  apt 
to  be  the  rounded  types  of  the  Hellenistic  period  such  as  C 
and  6;  the  Latin  P  is  usually  open,  and  the  L,  with  but  one 
known  exception,  right-angled.  Usually  there  is  a  dot  at  the 
end  of  each  stroke  and  everything  is  paralleled  in  the  Roman 
coinage  of  from  250  to  100  B.  C.  Unique  examples  show 
Etruscan  or  Oscan  letters. 

Returning  to  the  general  trend  of  early  Roman  gem¬ 
engraving,  we  find,  in  the  last  century  before  the  Christian  era 
the  two  above  described  classes  blending  into  each  other  or, 
rather,  the  Greek  influence  prevailing.  The  severity  of  the  old 
scarab  style  disappears,  leaving  only  a  stiffness  which  is  now, 
probably,  more  the  result  of  bad  workmanship  than  of  primi¬ 
tive  taste.  The  figures  are  in  a  free  background  though  the 
scarab  border  remains  on  some.  Dionysos  and  Eros  finally 
drive  out  most  of  the  hero  sagas  and  the  cult  scenes.  Never¬ 
theless  the  materials  used  in  the  Etruscan  group,  the  banded 
agate  and  sardonyx  and  other  flat  ring-stones,  remained  popular 
and  their  influence  even  prevailed  over  the  convexity  of  the 
Hellenizing  group,  so  that  the  dark  sards,  which  were  still  very 
much  in  evidence,  were  often  cut  flat.  The  red  jasper  came  into 
fashion  at  the  end  of  the  period,  along  with  the  nicolo,  a 
novelty  somewhat  earlier.  Stylistic  and  subjective  kinship  with 
the  Roman  coinage  of  the  time  helps  to  place  many  of  these 
gems,  such  as  Victory  in  a  chariot,  heads  of  Victory  and  of 
Diana,  the  winged  Nemesis,  as  on  the  coins  of  Vibius  Varro,  the 
calmly  classic  Apollo  type  on  those  of  Pomponius  Musa,  and 
the  Neptune  with  Capricornus  in  his  hand  indicating  the 


102  EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS— COMBINATION  PERIOD 


turning  point  of  the  year.  Especially  favored  was  the  hair 
treatment  rolled  up  at  the  back  and  side  in  rough  imitation  of 
the  Greek  fifth  century  style  (PI.  XIX,  1,  5,  8,  14). 

Inscriptions  also  followed  the  coinage  letterings,  ligatures 
are  common  (PI.  XIX,  7,  11),  the  finishing  dots  begin  to  run 
out  into  little  strokes  (PI.  XIX,  21),  and  there  are  more  Latin 
names  done  into  Greek,  though  the  Greek  in  Latin  letters  occur 
not  uncommonly.  All  still  refer  to  the  owners,  save  an  occa¬ 
sional  sentiment  (PI.  XIX,  7).  No  artists  appear. 

Subjects. — In  subjects  there  was  an  occasional  tendency 
to  revert  to  earlier  Greek  types  such  as  the  youthful  Eros  ( PI. 
XIX,  5),  and  a  goddess,  probably  Aphrodite,  is  shown  rising 
out  of  a  flower  (PI.  XIX,  8).  Psyche  became  much  more  popular 
and  was  pictured  as  a  maiden  with  a  bird’s  or  a  butterfly’s 
wings  (PL  XIX,  3,  10) ;  more  rarely  (PI.  XIX,  7)  as  a  butterfly. 
She  is  shown  being  bound  by  or  binding  Eros,  pierced  by  his 
arrow  or  before  an  altar  with  torch  and  patera.  Sometimes 
she  is  combined  with  Nemesis,  as  expressed  by  the  character¬ 
istic  bent  arm  gesture  (PL  XIX,  3),  and,  again,  with  Victory 
or  with  Peace.  Herm  busts  of  Psyche  are  also  in  evidence  (Pl. 
XIX,  14).  A  characteristic  attitude  of  both  Victory  and 
Nemesis  is  that  of  rising  on  the  toes,  as  shown  in  the  Eros  figure 
(PL  XIX,  5),  sometimes  with  a  bough  held  out  in  one  hand. 
Dionysos,  nymphs,  Bacchantes,  satyrs  and  Seileni  appear  in 
a  great  variety  of  poses  (PL  XIX,  1),  the  first  usually  as  a 
sturdy,  bearded  figure  (See  PL  XVIII,  8;  XXII,  2).  Priapos 
is  a  favorite,  though  evidently  not  often  chosen  in  a  spirit  of 
obscenity  but,  rather,  as  a  conception  of  creative  power.  One 
gem  shows  him  as  a  Herm  with  a  peacock  and  a  butterfly, 
another,  rising  out  of  a  flower,  and  Eros  is  pictured  making 
offering  to  him.  The  half-naked  Aphrodite,  often  the  back  view 
of  her,  is  also  found.  The  pictures  of  a  woman  with  a  swan 
may  be  either  Aphrodite  or  Leda  (Pl.  XIX,  13).  The  figure 
of  Methe  was  worn  as  a  guard  against  drunkenness. 

A  bearded  Herm  with  butterfly’s  wings,  probably  Hypnos 
(Pl.  XIX,  19),  is  a  typical  subject  of  this  epoch.  Eros  (Pl. 
XIX,  5),  of  course,  continues  first  of  all  in  popularity.  Mars, 


SUBJECTS 


103 


Neptune  (PI.  XIX,  16)  and  other  single  figures  of  gods  in 
many  characteristic  attitudes  are  common  as  they  are  even 
more  so  later.  Many  attributes  are  usually  added  to  make 
clear  their  identity,  though  these  are  sometimes  combined  in 
a  way  that  is  rather  confusing.  A  figure  of  what  may  be  a 
genius  with  a  caduceus,  cornucopia,  sword,  globe,  etc.,  is  an 
example  of  this  tendency  (PI.  XIX,  4).  Really  good  concep¬ 
tion,  taken  together  with  stiff,  angular  treatment,  is  often  the 
only  way  of  distinguishing  these  from  the  later  productions, 
for  stiff,  angular  treatment  on  poor  work  is  always  in  evidence. 
Many  types  now  got  the  permanent  form  they  continued  to 
appear  in.  Pantheistic  figures  emblematic  of  Rome’s  increas¬ 
ing  power  and  growing  World-government,  such,  perhaps,  as 
that  of  the  “genius”  just  referred  to,  naturally  became  favorites. 

Paintings  were  doubtless  more  common  now  and  some  gems 
show  evidence  of  being  taken  from  figures  in  them  (PI.  XIX, 
Fig.  1). 

Representations  of  philosophers,  students  and  the  like 
increase  greatly  in  number.  They  are  found  meditating,  read¬ 
ing,  writing,  sometimes  with  a  Herm  (PI.  XIX,  20)  or  a  sun¬ 
dial.  A  death’s-head  pictured  with  a  philosopher  shows  him 
thinking  about  death,  a  butterfly,  about  immortality,  and  so 
on.  Many  death’s-heads  and  skeletons  ( PI.  XIX,  9 ;  See  XXVI, 
9)  indicate  the  extremes  of  a  tendency  to  gloomy  reflections 
which  is  not  altogether  incongruous  with  that  same  Epicure¬ 
anism  that  gave  birth  to  the  many  Erotic  and  Bacchic  pictures. 
Wheels  and  pendulums  were  only  less  gruesome  symbols  of  the 
transitoriness  of  life.  Where  in  the  earlier  gems  under  Etrus¬ 
can  influence  there  is  evidenced  deep  religious  feeling  and  a 
belief  in  immortality,  now  we  find  few  cult  manifestations  but 
only  the  desire  for  pleasure  alternating  with  depression,  and 
the  trivial  hope  to  gain  good  luck  in  life  by  the  aid  of  the 
symbols  supposed  to  invoke  it.  Horns  of  plenty,  rudders, 
caducii,  thyrsi,  ears  of  wheat,  palm  branches  and  clubs  (PI. 
XIX,  7,  11,  12)  are  the  commonest  of  these:  also  there  are 
more  animal  pictures,  especially  of  the  animals  favored  by 
special  gods  (PI.  XIX,  2,  12,  19),  and  an  increasing  number 


104  EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS— COMBINATION  PERIOD 


of  grotesques  among  which  a  cicada  or  cricket  engaged  in 
various  human  employments  is  especially  characteristic  (PI. 
XIX,  15).  Possibly  its  resemblance  to  a  skeleton  may  have 
suggested  this  caprice  as  humorous,  but  the  symbols  it  some¬ 
times  carries,  its  frequency,  and  the  spirit  of  the  age  make  us 
suspect  rather  some  especial  significance  in  the  direction  of 
fortune-bringing.  Finally  there  are  all  sorts  of  utensils,  vases, 
fountains,  ships  and  armor,  especially  helmets  (PI.  XIX,  18), 
often  fantastically  contrived  with  animal  forms.  Bust  pictures 
of  war-horses’  heads  in  magic-working  combinations  are  also 
found  (PL  XIX,  17). 

There  is  practically  but  one  of  the  serious  cult  scenes  that 
Furtwangler  places  especially  in  this  epoch.  It  is  frequently 
repeated  on  the  gems  and  represents  a  maiden  sleeping,  just 
waking  or  peacefully  waiting.  She  is  either  sitting  bent  for¬ 
ward  or  half  reclining  and  sometimes  her  mantle  is  drawn 
over  the  back  of  her  head.  In  some  cases  she  is  alone,  in  others 
one  or  two  men  approach,  and  a  serpent  is  showm  twisting 
around  a  tree.  Beside  her  is  a  round  object  like  a  basket  in 
which  are  small  things  that  may  be  intended  for  loaves  of 
bread  and  over  which  her  left  arm  is  sometimes  stretched,  or 
she  may  be  shown  seated  on  it.  Often  there  is  added  a  pitcher 
or  vase.  A  tree,  like  a  laurel,  grows  near  and,  also,  ears  of 
wheat.  Ants  seem  to  be  approaching  her  and  above  hovers 
a  bird  which  sometimes  bears  a  staff,  a  thyrsus  or  a  wreath. 
Dr.  Furtwangler  makes  a  very  interesting  identification  of  the 
subject  of  these  gems  with  the  incident  of  the  revival  of  the  cult 
of  Juno  Sospita  at  Lanuvium,  which  had  fallen  into  decay 
about  90  B.  C.  This  revival  was  the  result  of  a  warning  that 
came  to  Rome  in  the  dream  of  a  woman,  a  Csecilia  of  the  family 
of  the  Metelli,  surely  akin  to  her  whose  tomb  now  stands  on 
the  Appian  Way,  if  it  be  not  indeed  the  same.  The  temple  was 
near  a  grove  where  had  been  found  the  lair  of  a  serpent  sacred 
to  the  goddess.  Crows  were  her  sacred  birds.  The  cult  cere¬ 
mony  consisted  in  leading  into  the  grove  a  young  woman  con¬ 
secrated  to  Juno,  her  eyes  bound  and  a  cake  in  her  hand.  If 
she  was  pure  the  serpent  would  eat  the  cake.  If  she  was 


SUBJECTS 


105 


impure,  ants  came  and  broke  and  carried  it  away.  In  the 
former  event  the  people  believed  that  the  year  would  be  fertile 
(PI.  XIX,  6). 

In  closing  this  epoch  it  is  to  be  noted  in  connection  with 
the  numerous  heads  of  deities  pictured,  that  toward  its  end 
the  portraiture  on  gems  made  tremendous  strides  toward  per¬ 
fection  (PL  XIX,  21,  22).  We  have  excellent  likenesses  of 
Pompeius  Magnus  ( PI.  XIX,  21 ) ,  Caesar  and  Marcus  Antonius 
that  show  the  ultimate  triumph  of  Hellenistic  art.  Early 
Eoman  roughness  disappears,  and  there  comes  to  be  a  distinct 
Italian  style  which,  from  its  combination  of  Greek  workman¬ 
ship  with  Roman  developments  and  Roman  or  World-wide 
subjects,  may  be  called  Graeco-Roman. 


CHAPTER  VII 


GR2EC0-R0MAFI  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 

From  this  time  on  must  be  dated  the  great  majority  of 
stones  that  come  into  our  hands  today,  and,  also,  it  becomes 
extremely  difficult,  in  some  cases  impossible,  to  distinguish 
many  of  them  from  earlier  Hellenistic  work.  All  sorts  of 
archaizing  tendencies  prevailed  and  the  taste  of  the  individual, 
the  skill  of  the  artists  and  the  perfection  of  their  tools  made 
everything  possible.  From  the  days  of  Pompey  and  Caesar  and 
the  final  conquest  of  the  East,  fuller  knowledge  of  the  beauty 
of  Greek  gems,  the  growing  craze  for  Greek  art  and  the  appre¬ 
ciation  of  Greek  learning,  led,  not  only  to  a  wellnigh  universal 
use  of  gem  signets,  good,  bad  and  indifferent,  but  also  to  a 
collecting  mania  that  may  well  have  resulted  in  ancient  for¬ 
geries  of  still  earlier  work  which  might  be  extremely  interesting 
were  we  able  now  to  identify  them  with  any  certainty.  Pom- 
pey’s  dedication  of  Mithridates’  collection  in  the  Capitol,  and 
the  six  collections  dedicated  by  Julius  Caesar  in  the  temple  of 
Venus  Victrix  voice  the  taste.  It  has  been  too  much  the 
fashion  to  assume,  in  view  of  the  better  taste  of  earlier  times, 
that  the  finest  gems  are  all  Hellenistic  and  the  mass  of  poorer 
cuttings  all  Imperial.  The  dictum  is  doubtless  true  as  to  most 
of  the  latter,  but,  as  I  have  said  before,  there  must  always  have 
been  more  bad  workmen  than  artists,  and  poorer  people  who 
aspired  or  had  need  to  follow  the  fashions  of  the  rich.  There¬ 
fore,  badly  cut  stones,  where  the  material  and  subject  comply 
with  the  taste  and  fashion  of  an  earlier  date,  must  not  be  hailed 
too  positively  as  Imperial.  On  the  other  hand  the  really  good 
engraving  of  the  numerous  Greek  artists  whom  the  wealth  of 
Rome  and  the  demand  for  their  work  there  attracted  to  the 
106 


GREATER  NUMBER  OF  GEMS 


107 


Capital  of  the  World  was,  generally  speaking,  quite  equal  to 
the  products  of  the  best  Hellenistic  art,  while  its  quantity 
was  much  greater.  The  reproduction  of  earlier  subjects  and 
the  affectation  of  earlier  styles  go  to  make  the  matter  still 
more  complex.  To  sum  it  all  up,  the  moral  is  that,  while  com¬ 
binations  of  material,  subject  and  method  lead  us  to  satisfac¬ 
tory  attributions  in  the  majority  of  instances,  the  student  and 
connoisseur  must  not  generalize  too  liberally  and  must  guard 
against  hard  and  fast  theories  that  would  apply  the  dogmatic 
yard-stick  as  the  final  measure  of  all  things. 

One  reason  why  our  supply  of  ancient  gems  of  later  epochs 
is  in  greater  proportion  than  the  relative  product  of  the  earlier 
periods  is  found  in  the  enormous  increase  of  ring  wearing 
among  the  Romans.  In  Republican  times  it  was  considered 
effeminate  to  wear  more  than  the  needful  signet.  In  Horace’s 
day  to  sport  three  rings  on  the  left  hand  marked  the  finished 
exquisite,  but  in  Martial’s  his  fop  wears  half  a  dozen  on  each 
finger,  and  Quintilian  cautions  orators  against  overloading  the 
hand  with  rings.  On  the  practical  side  too,  Pliny  (Bk. 
XXXIII,  6)  dilates  on  the  increased  necessity  of  sealing  up 
everything  from  the  horde  of  thievish  slaves  and  he  comments 
on  the  ring  worn  to  seal  up  the  cabinet  which  held  the  signet 
ring  proper,  the  latter  being  too  valuable  a  thing  to  be  worn 
abroad  with  the  attendant  risk  of  loss.  Still  further  he  speaks 
of  the  lower  orders  of  citizens  “slipping  off  the  ring  the  moment 
a  simple  contract  is  made,”  a  suggestive  sentence  as  to  the 
widespread  practice  of  signet  wearing  and  the  constant  use  of 
the  signet  even  by  persons  of  little  consequence.  A  point,  too, 
to  be  considered  from  the  standpoint  of  probability  of  discovery 
is  that  most  of  the  art  of  earlier  ages  lies  deeper  in  the  debris 
of  antiquity — further  underground — than  does  that  of  the 
later,  and  the  surface  scratchings  of  peasants,  workmen,  and 
even  archaeologists  which  have  produced  many  of  our  present 
possessions  have  left  the  gems  of  older  days  undisturbed,  let  us 
hope,  for  future  chances  and  more  systematic  excavation.  With 
these  qualifications  and  warnings  in  mind  we  may  take  up  the 
considerations  that  must  govern  us  in  accomplishing  the  much 


108 


GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


that  can  be  accomplished  in  the  lines  of  study  and  illumination. 

Materials. — We  now  find,  practically,  every  known  stone 
obtainable  and  in  use.  The  best  work  is  apt  to  appear  on 
garnet,  aquamarine,  beryl,  topaz,  peridot  and,  very  rarely, 
emerald  and  sapphire.  The  commonest  material  was  a  trans¬ 
lucent  carnelian  from  the  East.  Darker  sard  and  chalcedony 
were  still  in  vogue,  also  amethyst.  Rock-crystal  was  rare. 
Agate  had  largely  gone  out  of  fashion  but  the  sardonyx  was  still 
popular  cut  in  a  new  way,  not  across  the  layers  but  parallel 
with  them,  and  the  gem  was  fashioned  in  the  shape  of  a  trun¬ 
cated  cone  in  order  best  to  display  the  different  colors  on  the 
sides  of  the  stone  rising  from  the  bezel  of  the  ring.  The  picture 
was,  of  course,  cut  in  the  smaller  layer  at  the  top. 

Another  specific  development  of  the  period,  though  not  an 
absolute  novelty,  was  the  green  plasma,  always  more  or  less 
convex  in  form  and  bearing,  for  the  most  part,  a  single  figure 
of  some  deity  or  a  copy  of  a  statue.  It  became  a  definite  gem 
class  in  the  first  century  B.  C.,  about  the  time  of  Julius  Caesar. 
A  third  fashionable  stone,  whose  evolution  has  been  noted  some¬ 
what  earlier  and  which  had  increased  so  rapidly  in  popularity 
as  to  augur  some  supposed  magical  influence  in  it,  was  the 
iEgyptilla,  an  agate  of  two  layers,  generally  a  black  or  dark 
brown  and  a  grayish  blue,  the  intaglio  being  cut  through  the 
light  layer  into  the  dark,  the  former  also  being  usually  cut  away 
around  the  edges  so  as  to  leave  a  darker  border.  This  gem  thus 
engraved  is  known  as  the  nicolo.  On  it,  too,  single  figures  and 
famous  statue  types  were  the  popular  subjects.  Red  jasper, 
also,  unused  except  occasionally  in  the  older  Greek  period,  had 
begun  again  in  the  combination  epoch  and  now  became  charac¬ 
teristic,  remaining  so  through  the  Empire.  Aspasios,  one  of 
the  best  artists,  used  a  peculiar  bright  red  variety,  and  won¬ 
derful  work  is  found  on  it.  Green  jasper  also  reappeared,  and, 
as  the  period  advanced,  two  new  materials  came  into  use,  yel¬ 
low  jasper  and  heliotrope  or  bloodstone. 

Book  XXXVII  of  the  Natural  History  of  Pliny  the  Elder, 
written  in  the  early  part  of  the  first  century  A.  D.,  on  the 
precious  stones  of  the  period  together  with  their  medical  and 


MATERIALS  AND  TECHNIQUE 


109 


magical  properties,  furnishes  most  interesting  reading  for  the 
student  of  the  subject.  Color  was  pretty  much  the  only  test 
of  kind,  and,  in  many  instances,  it  is  extremely  difficult  to 
identify  his  names  and  descriptions  with  stones  as  we  know 
them  to-day. 

Glass  pastes,  though  beginning  to  fall  off  in  numbers,  were 
still  common  throughout  this  epoch,  especially  in  Italy  during 
Augustan  times,  and  some  are  so  large  that  they  could  not 
have  been  meant  for  signets.  Usually  they  are  transparent 
white,  light  blue,  yellow,  brown,  green  and  violet,  and  bear 
nearly  always  copies  of  the  best  gem  pictures,  especially  those 
from  the  Erotic  and  Bacchic  cycles.  Later,  poorer  purchasers 
seemed  rather  to  prefer  a  stone,  however  cheaply  cut,  to  a  fine 
paste,  a  sure  sign  of  the  coming  decay  of  art  interest.  Seals 
cut  in  metal  practically  went  out  of  use. 

Technique. — In  the  matter  of  technique  the  good  gem 
engraving  of  the  early  Empire  was  practically  as  Greek  as 
was  the  Hellenistic.  The  bad  might  well  be  anything  and  the 
tendencies  were  alike  over  all  the  Roman  World,  better,  of 
course,  in  the  great  centers  of  culture  like  Rome,  Athens, 
Alexandria,  etc.,  poorer  in  more  backward  or  decadent  districts. 
The  lords  of  the  World  began  by  having  their  portraits  cut 
by  Greek  artists,  and  the  other  signet  subjects  of  the  wealthy 
followed  naturally.  Generally  speaking,  convex  garnets  with 
single  figures  cut  sketchily  with  long  lines  seem  to  have  been 
especially  popular  in  the  East,  and  glass  pastes  were  much 
less  common  there  than  in  Italy  before,  say  50  A.  D.,  when  the 
manufacture  at  Rome  began  to  flag.  The  favorite  figures  on 
these  garnets  were,  first  Tyche,  then  Demeter  with  her  torches, 
Nemesis,  Athena,  Apollo,  and  an  unknown  goddess  with  sceptre 
and  bowl;  also  animals,  masks  and  symbols.  The  Nemesis 
(PI.  XXV,  4),  though  done  on  a  sardonyx,  is  a  good  example 
of  this  style. 

As  at  an  earlier  time,  the  more  translucent  stones  were 
apt  to  be  more  or  less  convex,  either  on  both  sides  or,  at  least, 
on  the  picture  one;  the  opaque  stones  were  flat  or  nearly  so. 
Practically  all  are  ring-stones  with  the  exception  of  rare  pierced 


110 


GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


four-sided  pendants  engraved  on  all  four  sides,  a  single  example 
of  a  five-sided  pendant,  a  probably  unique  cylinder,  and  a  few 
large  intaglios  that  must  have  been  made  for  ornaments  rather 
than  signets.  The  oval,  as  the  tendency  in  the  Hellenizing 
Roman  group  foreshadows,  inclines  more  to  broadness  than 
does  the  Hellenistic  and  occasionally  there  is  an  approach  to 
the  four-cornered  shape  noted  in  the  Roman  gems  under  Etrus¬ 
can  influence.  In  these,  as  before,  the  milled  border  was  usually 
preserved.  Otherwise  it  is  very  rare. 

Tools  and  technical  skill  were,  as  I  have  said,  at  their 
best,  and  the  only  noticeable  falling  away  of  the  best  Augustan 
from  even  the  best  Greek  examples  was  in  inspiration,  softness, 
tenderness  and  bold  freshness.  Here  everything  was  neat, 
sharp,  definite  and  inclined  to  be  dry.  Delicacy  was  carried 
to  a  higher  point  than  at  any  other  time.  There  was  the  Hellen¬ 
istic  fondness  for  very  fine  parallel  lines,  especially  in  delineat¬ 
ing  hair,  and  a  preference  for  foreshortened  oblique  views  of 
animals  (PI.  XXVI,  19,  21),  also  Hellenistic,  and  which  served 
to  display  the  artists’  skill.  It  is  something  very  like  this  that 
we  find  in  the  latter  part  of  the  Italian  Renaissance,  beginning 
even  with  Michael  Angelo  and  running  riot  in  Bernini :  a 
consciousness  on  the  part  of  the  craftsman  of  his  ability  to 
do  difficult  things  and  a  desire  to  show  off,  than  which  there 
is  no  surer  sign  of  the  decay  of  true  taste.  Floating  drapery 
was  charmingly  rendered  as  was  also  the  transparent.  The 
poorer  work  generally  tried  to  copy  the  best  and,  in  so  doing, 
graded  down  from  what  may  be  called  sketchy  to  frankly  crude. 
Even  when  the  great  artists  of  the  period  copied  famous  old 
gems  they,  doubtless,  substituted  their  own  precision  for  the 
ancient  breadth  of  handling,  artistlike  considering  their  art  the 
greater.  After  the  fall  of  the  Claudian  princes  we  find  a 
decadence  setting  in,  which  had  its  climax  in  the  Flavian 
principiates.  Internal  disturbances,  civil  wars,  and  the  acces¬ 
sion  of  a  family  who  were  primarily  rough  soldiers,  all  had 
their  influence.  Under  Hadrian  there  was  a  distinct  revival  of 
Greek  taste  and  artistic  luxury  but  it  was  the  last  real  flash 
of  the  flame,  and  by  150  A.  D.  had  begun  the  final  decay  that 


SUBJECTS 


111 


progressed  from  then  on  with  practically  no  interruption.  The 
sale  of  Hadrian’s  cabinet  of  gems  by  the  philosopher,  Marcus 
Aurelius,  in  order  to  replenish  his  military  chest  for  the  war 
against  the  Marcomanni,  which  Capitolinus  tells  of,  is  a  sug¬ 
gestive  incident. 

Subjects. — It  is  now  that  we  find  nearly  every  gem  subject 
in  evidence.  There  were  preferences,  of  course,  but  nothing 
was  neglected,  and  comparatively  few  specimens  can  be  denied 
to  this  epoch  on  the  score  of  their  motives.  Primarily  the 
controlling  ideas  were  art  pure  and  simple,  flattery  of  the 
great,  and  superstition  as  opposed  to  the  higher  religious 
thought,  as  is  evidenced  in  the  great  number  of  magic-working 
and  luck-bringing  symbols  and  the  craze  for  the  mystic  eastern 
cults. 

Of  the  older  gods  the  child  Eros  prevailed  in  endlessly 
varied  pictures,  for  the  most  part  sportive  and  frivolous  (PI. 
XXI,  3;  XXIII,  8;  XXIV,  1—3,  6—8).  Often  he  is  shown  to¬ 
gether  with  Psyche.  The  reclining  Hermaphrodite  was  a  favorite, 
and  there  were  many  charming  female  figures  of  the  type  of 
the  Aphrodite  Kallipyge,  the  bathing  Artemis  (PI.  XXIV,  18), 
Nereids  (PI.  XXII,  5,  10),  Muses  (PI.  XXVII,  16),  mainads 
(PI.  XXI,  20),  Horai,  etc.  Victory  (PI.  XXIV,  14,  15)  and 
Fortuna  (PI.  XXV,  9)  were,  of  course,  very  common.  Hypnos 
is  not  rare  (PI.  XXIV,  17).  Dionysos  (PI.  XXII,  2;  XXIII, 
5),  satyrs  and  Tritons  (PI.  XXII,  10;  XXVI,  3),  Herakles — 
or,  as  we  should,  perhaps,  write  it  now,  Hercules — (PI.  XX, 
7;  XXV,  7,  19;  XXVII,  11,  17),  often  according  to  the  youth¬ 
ful  type  shown  by  Praxiteles,  and  many  classical  subjects,  in¬ 
cluding  the  Seilenos  type  of  the  fifth  century  B.  C.,  all  abound. 
None  of  the  gods  is  lacking.  The  Venus  Victrix  ( PI.  XXIII,  21 ; 
XXIV,  12)  was  an  especially  favored  subject  in  compliment 
to  Caesar  whose  patroness  she  was  and  who  wore  her  on  his 
signet.  Mars  Ultor  (PI.  XXIII,  23)  and  Mars  Gradivus  (PL 
XXIII,  22)  were  common,  Mars  Navalis  with  a  Victory  in  his 
hand  and  his  foot  on  a  ship  (PI.  XXIII,  24)  suggests  Augustus’ 
triumph  at  Actium,  while  many  more  or  less  crude  Minervas 
may  be  referred  to  Flavian  times  as  being  representations  of 


112 


GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


the  favored  and  favoring  deity  of  that  house.  The  good  fortune 
of  the  emperor  as  well  as  his  more  tangible  favor  invoked  by 
the  flattery  was  thus  sought  for. 

At  this  time,  too,  we  find  in  the  Fortuna  Pantheia,  or  For- 
tuna  invested  with  the  attributes  of  other  divinities,  a  Roman 
manifestation  of  pantheistic  tendencies  (See  Furtwangler,  PI. 
XLIV,  68).  Lucian  has  left  us  an  account  of  a  similar  but, 
doubtless,  earlier  development  in  the  East:  the  “Syrian  god¬ 
dess”  of  Emesa  who,  whether  Juno,  Isis  or  Nature  as  variously 
named,  united  the  attributes  of  Pallas,  Venus  Urania,  Arte¬ 
mis,  Rhea,  Nemesis  and  the  Fates  (With  the  lotus  flower  of 
Isis,  PI.  XXIII,  17).  She  was  enthroned  with  or  upon  lions, 
wore  a  radiated  or  turreted  crown  and  the  cestus  and  bore  the 
distaff  and  sceptre.  Jupiter  Belus,  her  male  type,  was  throned 
on  bulls. 

Sculpture  and  painting  furnished  the  models  for  numerous 
engravings  on  the  gems.  Most  of  the  pictures  of  gods  seem  to 
be  copied  from  specific  statues,  occasionally  with  a  pedestal 
included,  and  an  endless  repetition  of  types  and  poses,  ranging 
all  the  way  from  the  best  work  to  the  worst,  was  the  result. 
To  name  a  few  of  the  famous  sculpture  types,  there  is  the 
Hercules  of  the  severe  school  (Shown  by  Furtwangler,  PL 
XLIII,  85,  37)  as  well  as  both  the  Pheidian  (Furtwangler, 
PI.  XXXIX,  20)  and  the  Praxitelian  (PI.  XXV,  7),  the  Apollo 
of  Kanachos,  with  a  deer  (PI.  XXIII,  4),  the  Sauroktonos  of 
Praxiteles  (PI.  XXIII,  3),  and,  also,  standing  beside  a  column 
(PI.  XXII,  4),  Zeus  (PI.  XXIII,  11,  12,  19),  Hermes  (PI.  XX, 
2;  XXIII,  14—16),  Neptune  (PI.  XXIII,  20),  Athena  (PI. 
XXIII,  25),  and  the  Athena  Parthenos  of  Pheidias  (Bust,  PI. 
XX,  9).  Also  the  Athena  Promachos  and  the  Athena  of  Lemnos 
are  shown  in  busts.  The  Ephesian  Artemis  is  common  (PI. 
XXIII,  26).  The  Amazon  of  Kresilas  is  copied  both  in  full 
figure  and  in  bust  (PI.  XXI,  18),  but  especially  in  favor  were 
the  works  of  Polykleitos,  notably  the  Doryphoros  (PI.  XXV, 
12)  and  the  Diadoumenos.  The  Theseus  (PI.  XX,  14)  is 
thoroughly  Polykleitan,  as  is  the  Pan  (?)  (PI.  XXI,  21).  The 
Triptolemos  type,  which  goes  back  to  Euphranor  and  was 


SUBJECTS 


113 


regarded  by  the  Romans  as  a  Bonus  Eventus  and,  hence, 
especially  propitious,  was  a  great  favorite  and  continued  so 
far  down  in  glyptic  art  (PI.  XXIV,  20,  21).  The  Discobolus 
of  Myron  was  copied  (PI.  XXV,  11  is  a  variant  of  the  theme 
quite  in  the  style  of  that  sculptor)  and,  perhaps,  his  Perseus; 
also  the  archer  Cupid  of  Lysippos  (See  PI.  XXIII,  8).  The 
athlete  (PI.  XX,  4),  the  Hypnos  (PI.  XXV,  5),  and  the  winged 
figure  (PI.  XXV,  6)  are  also  probably  copies  of  statues.  A 
certain  line  of  archaic  work  delicately  overdone  seems  to  follow 
Kallimachos  (PI.  XXIV,  16).  Greek  statues  were  naturally 
the  most  popular  but  there  are  a  few  Roman  ones  such  as  the 
Augustan  Mars  Ultor  (PI.  XXIII,  23)  and  the  Spes  (PI. 
XXV,  10).  Busts  and  heads  of  divinities  were,  of  course,  com¬ 
mon  (PL  XX,  1,  3,  8,  9,  13;  XXI,  1,  4,  14,  16,  17,  19;  XXII, 
1,  9,  13;  XXIV,  5). 

For  the  general  rendering  of  subjects  from  all  sources  they 
even  went  back  to  the  wounded  hero  groups  in  the  Etruscaniz- 
ing  Roman  gems  (PI.  XXV,  17),  and  the  hero  cycles  were 
popular  sources  of  inspiration  (PI.  XX,  5,  7,  14,  15;  XXV, 
1,  7,  8, 14, 19,  20;  XXVII,  11,  15).  From  paintings,  also,  many 
ideas  seem  to  be  taken,  though  here  our  attributions  are  neces¬ 
sarily  more  speculative  and  but  one  or  two  figures  could  usually 
be  shown  on  a  gem.  Still,  judging  from  the  ancient  writers, 
there  is  every  probability  that  we  have  many  famous  paintings 
or  parts  of  them  preserved  to  us  glyptically.  The  Victory 
driving  a  four-horse  chariot  of  Nichomachos  may  be  one  of 
these  and  the  Medeia  and  the  Ajax  of  Timomachos  (PL  XXV, 
1),  others.  Both  the  last  named  paintings  treated  the  motive 
of  brooding  madness.  Ajax  was  a  well  known  figure  in  Etrus¬ 
can  and  Roman  art,  but  the  Medeia  first  appeared  after  Caesar 
purchased  Timomachos’  two  works  and  hung  them  in  the  temple 
of  Venus  Genetrix.  Many  pictures  of  the  lamenting  Kassandra 
and  of  Achilleus  sulking  in  his  tent  (PL  XXV,  14)  or  playing 
the  lyre  (PL  XX,  15)  may  be  from  paintings,  and  engravings 
of  Prometheus,  an  athlete  (Pl.  XXV,  13),  of  Orestes  killing 
Klytaimnestra,  and  of  the  theft  of  the  Palladium  (PL  XX,  5) 
may  be  copied  respectively  from  the  World-famous  works  of 


114 


GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


Parrhasios,  Eupompos,  Theon  and  Polygnotos.  The  Hercules 
carrying  a  bull  (PI.  XX,  7),  the  Nike  sacrificing  a  bull  (Pl. 
XX,  12),  and  many  of  the  Cupid  conceits  seem  inspired  from 
such  a  source,  and  certain  pictures  of  the  gods,  especially 
Athena,  Zeus  and  Ares,  contending  with  snake-legged  giants 
(Pl.  XXIII,  13),  the  Trojan  horse  scene  on  a  glass  paste,  and 
a  Plouto  or  Serapis  enthroned  between  the  Dioskoroi.  To  later 
Alexandrian  paintings  may  probably  be  referred  certain  type 
pictures  of  Aphrodite  playing  with  Eros  (Pl.  XX,  10),  Artemis 
and  Actaion  (Pl.  XXIV,  18),  Narkissos,  Ganymedes,  Hermes 
(PL  XXII,  12),  Marsyas  (PL  XXIV,  13),  Helios,  Aphrodite 
riding  a  sea-monster  (Pl.  XXII,  5),  and  the  Triton  and  Nereid 
(PL  XXII,  10).  The  vase  painters,  too,  supplied  many  motives. 

As  showing  the  art  feeling  of  the  period,  the  favorite  motive 
of  the  Medousa  head  was  seldom  engraved  as  the  hideous  awe¬ 
inspiring  type  of  earlier  times  but  as  that  of  a  beautiful  maiden, 
stern,  often  with  wings  on  her  head,  and  evidencing  her  identity 
only  by  the  serpents  in  her  hair  (Pl.  XX,  8;  XXI,  4;  XXII,  1). 

All  sorts  of  representations  of  everyday  life  and  occupa¬ 
tions,  and,  especially,  rural  scenes,  seem  to  be  inspired  by 
purely  artistic  feeling,  though  many  of  the  occupation  motives 
doubtless  suggested  the  calling  of  the  wearer,  and  the  numerous 
pictures  of  almost  every  known  animal  or  of  their  heads,  as  well 
as  the  sphinxes  and  griffins,  may  be  assigned  either  to  the  art 
or  to  the  protecting  deity  motive  (Pl.  XXVI,  4,  7,  14,  19,  21, 
23—25,  27). 

A  large  class  of  gems  show  an  eagle,  often  on  an  altar 
between  two  standards  or  some  variant  of  the  idea,  and  were, 
doubtless,  the  signets  of  soldiers  who  sought  thus  to  signalize 
their  calling  which,  under  the  Empire,  became  a  distinct  pro¬ 
fession.  I  have  even  found  scratched  on  one — evidently  not 
by  the  gem-engraver — what  appears  to  be  the  number  of  a  legion 
(Pl.  XXVII,  6)  and,  bearing  in  mind  the  fact  that  each  legion 
bore,  as  it  were,  some  heraldic  device,  where  such  occurs  with 
a  standard  or  any  symbol  denoting  the  soldier  we  may  often 
assume  to  what  command  the  owner  belonged.  Known  legion¬ 
ary  cognizances  are  the  following:  I  (Adjutrix),  Capricorn, 


SUBJECTS 


115 


Pegasos;  I  (Italica),  Boar,  Bull;  I  (Minerva),  Bam;  II  (Ad- 
jutrix),  Boar,  Pegasos;  II  (Augusta),  Capricorn, Pegasos  (?)  ; 
II  (Italica),  Slie-wolf  and  twins,  Capricorn;  II  (Parthica), 
Centaur;  II  (Trajana),  Hercules;  III  (Gallica),  Bull;  III 
(Italica),  Stork;  IV  (Flavia),  Lion;  IV  (Macedonica),  Bull, 
Capricorn;  V  (Alaudae),  perhaps  originally  a  lark  but,  by 
special  authorization  of  Caesar,  on  account  of  their  success 
against  the  elephants  of  Juba,  they  bore  an  elephant  on  their 
standards;  V  (Macedonica),  Bull;  VI  (Victrix),  Bull;  VII 
(Claudia),  Bull;  VIII  (Augusta),  Bull;  X  (Fretensis),  Bull, 
Boar,  Galley;  X  (Gemina),  Bull;  XI  (Claudia),  Neptune; 
XIII  (Gemina),  Lion;  XIV  (Gemina,  Martia,  Victrix),  Capri¬ 
corn;  XX  (Valeria  Victrix),  Boar;  XXI  (Rapax),  Capricorn; 
XXII  (Primigenia),  Capricorn;  XXX  (Ulpia),  Neptune, 
Capricorn.  (See  the  gem  figured  PI.  XXVI,  12.) 

From  the  frequency  of  zodiacal  signs  among  these  insignia 
and  the  repetition  of  the  same  sign,  it  has  been  inferred  that 
the  device  referred  to  the  month  when  and,  hence,  the  heavenly 
auspices  under  which  the  legion  was  organized.  It  is  also 
claimed  that  the  bull  cognizance  means  that  the  legion  was 
formed  by  Julius  Csesar,  because  Venus,  the  protectress  of  the 
Julian  house,  usually  presides  over  the  sign,  Taurus.  Capri¬ 
corn  may  thus  indicate  a  legion  organized  by  Augustus,  and 
Minerva  or  the  ram,  one  formed  by  Domitian.  Possible 
reorganizations  or  special  permissions  to  place  themselves  under 
imperial  auspices  may  also  be  evidenced.  Students  may  be 
referred  to  the  Notitia  Imperii  for  other  (fifth  century)  infor¬ 
mation  on  this  subject,  especially  as  to  the  special  insignia  of 
the  cohorts  under  the  Late  Empire. 

Pictures  of  animals  in  incongruous  occupations  may  be 
either  charms  or  merely  humorous  conceptions.  There  are  dogs, 
mice  and  other  creatures  driving  chariots  to  which  roosters 
are  yoked  (PI.  XXVII,  9),  cranes  playing  musical  instruments 
(PI.  XXVI,  27)  and  other  kindred  grotesque  conceptions. 

The  portrait  heads  (PI.  XX,  6,  11;  XXI,  2,  5 — 8),  of  which 
there  are  very  many,  were  either  personal  or  complimentary 
in  their  significance.  The  Greek  philosophers,  poets  and  orators 


116 


GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


were  much  favored  in  this  line  and  we  have  at  least  what  passed 
for  the  lineaments  of  Sokrates  (PI.  XXI,  7),  Epikouros,  Dio¬ 
genes,  Antisthenes,  Aristoteles,  Homer  and  Demosthenes. 
Among  portraits  of  famous  Romans  are  the  Sextus  Pompeius  of 
Agathangelos  (PI.  XX,  6),  Junius  Brutus,  doubtless  carried  as 
the  signet  of  some  mourner  for  the  old  Republican  days,  several 
possible  Ciceros,  the  Julia,  daughter  of  Titus,  by  Evodos  (PL 
XX,  11),  and,  of  course,  endless  portraits  of  the  emperors, 
easily  identified  and,  unfortunately,  as  easily  copied,  from  the 
fine  likenesses  on  the  bronze  coins  of  the  early  Empire.  A 
deeper  reason  than  mere  compliment  existed,  as  I  have  sug¬ 
gested,  for  wearing  the  emperor’s  portrait,  since,  by  so  doing, 
the  wearer  sought  to  invoke  to  his  aid  the  “Fortune”  of  the 
prince,  just  as  the  Japanese  have  attributed  victories  to  the 
“Virtues  of  the  Mikado”  and,  in  this  connection,  also,  may  be 
noted  the  spirit  of  vanity  or  adulation  involved  in  the  frequent 
representation  of  rulers  in  the  guise  of  some  deity.  Alexander’s 
pose  as  Zeus  (PL  XIV,  1)  is,  probably,  the  earliest  but  through¬ 
out  Roman  times  we  find  the  constantly  increasing  tendency. 
Empresses  were  pictured  as  Isis,  Ceres,  Cybele,  Diana,  etc., 
and  the  emperors  figured  mostly  as  Ammon  or  Serapis. 

That  there  lurked  danger,  however,  in  this  custom  of 
wearing  likenesses  of  the  great,  is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that, 
under  Tiberius,  certain  persons  were  executed  for  sacrilege  for 
visiting  brothels  while  wearing  rings  set  with  the  portrait  of 
the  deified  Augustus.  The  quality  of  the  portrait  work  begins 
to  fall  off  after  Augustus’  time. 

The  theatre,  too,  is  much  in  evidence  in  the  figures  and 
masks  (Pl.  XXI,  9,  10;  XXII,  6,  7)  drawn  generally  from  the 
later  Attic  comedy,  and  the  sports  of  the  circus,  which  grew 
constantly  in  favor  and,  later,  became  a  craze  that  overturned 
emperors,  were  signalized  by  pictures  of  favorite  chariot  teams 
and  famous  horses  (Pl.  XXVI,  22;  XXVII,  13),  often  with  the 
name  added.  The  circus  scene  (PL  XXII,  3)  is  especially 
interesting  in  this  connection.  The  ingenious  combinations  of 
several  masks  in  one  head  (Pl.  XXI,  13)  are  connected  rather 
with  the  amulets  and  talismans  which  we  shall  consider  later. 


SUBJECTS 


117 


Especially  numerous  now  on  gems  are  weapons,  armor,  ships 
(PI.  XXVI,  1,  2),  vases  (PI.  XXV,  22,  23),  and,  above  all, 
luck-bringing  symbols,  heads,  and  animals  (PL  XXVI,  4,  14, 
16,  20,  28,  30),  often  astronomical  (PL  XXVI,  15;  XXVII,  7, 
8;  XXIX,  1,  4,  10).  Capricornus  is  most  often  found  (PL 
XXVI,  15;  XXIX,  4,  10).  Leo  is  common  and  may  be  dis¬ 
tinguished  from  purely  animal  pictures  of  lions  by  the  star 
or  stars  in  the  field  (Pl.  XXI,  11).  It  is  not  always  easy, 
however,  to  tell  it  from  the  later  Mithraic  lions  pictured  as 
typifying  the  Sun  (See  Pl.  XXIX,  14,  23).  Cancer  (PL 
XXVII,  7),  also,  is  not  uncommon,  sometimes  with  a  face 
pictured  on  the  shell.  Pisces  occurs,  as  does  Gemini  ( Pl.  XXIX, 
1),  Virgo,  to  be  distinguished  from  Victory  by  her  wheat  sheaf 
and  helmet,  and  most  if  not  all  of  the  rest.  I  have  one  gem  on 
which  are  found  both  Libra  and  Scorpio  (Pl.  XXVII,  8),  prob¬ 
ably  the  signet  of  one  whose  birth  fell  at  the  juncture  of  the 
signs  and  who  sought  the  influence  of  both.  Three  signs 
together  seem  to  indicate  some  sort  of  recognition  of  the  doc¬ 
trine  of  trines.  According  to  Manilius  there  was  a  tutelary 
relation  between  certain  deities  and  the  Zodiac,  as  Minerva 
with  Aries,  Venus  with  Taurus,  Apollo  with  Gemini,  Hermes 
with  Cancer,  Jove  and  Cybele  with  Leo,  Ares  with  Virgo, 
Vulcan  with  Libra,  Mars  with  Scorpio,  Diana  with  Sagittarius, 
Vesta  with  Capricorn,  Neptune  with  Pisces  and  Juno  with 
Aquarius.  The  reason  for  the  connection  is  obvious  in  several 
of  these.  Firmicus  also  lays  down  the  varying  powers  of 
certain  astral  deities  in  connection  with  certain  signs;  all  of 
which  will  explain  the  occurrence  of  gods  together  with  zodiacal 
symbols  sometimes  other  than  of  their  own  houses.  Day  and 
night,  too,  seem  to  have  varied  the  influences;  in  short  it  may 
be  possible  to  illumine  and  illustrate  by  gems  much  of  the 
abstruse  and  involved  astrological  superstition  of  early  times. 
As  illustrative  of  the  supposed  power  of  astronomical  gems,  it 
was  told  that  when  Apollonius  of  Tyana  visited  the  Brahman, 
Iarchus,  his  host  presented  him  with  seven  rings,  each  named 
for  a  planet  and  to  be  worn  on  its  proper  day,  with  the  result 
that  the  philosopher  preserved  his  vigor  and  good  looks  beyond 


118 


GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


his  hundredth  year.  In  the  matter  of  close  dating  we  may  safely 
place  many  of  the  Capricornus  gems  in  the  principiate  of 
Augustus  whose  birth  sign  it  was,  and,  likewise,  those  of  Scorpio 
in  the  reign  of  Tiberius — these  for  the  joint  reasons  that 
prompted  the  wide  adoption  of  the  Venus  Victrix  and  the 
Flavian  Minerva  as  gem  devices.  Early  in  the  Empire  good 
fortune  seems  to  have  been  most  easily  invoked  by  ears  of  wheat, 
horns  of  plenty,  rudders,  palm  branches  and  the  attributes  and 
sacred  animals  of  the  different  gods.  Often  the  symbol  was 
pictured  held  in  a  hand  (PL  XXIX,  5)  and  clasped  hands  hold¬ 
ing  a  wheat  ear  was  an  emblem  of  marriage  by  the  ceremony 
of  the  confarreatio  (PI.  XXVII,  10;  XXVIII,  16).  Later,  these 
signs  were  displaced  to  a  large  extent  by  the  fantastic  sympleg- 
mata  or  grylli  combinations  of  which  I  have  spoken  above  and 
which  seem  to  have  had  an  eastern  origin.  I  would  prefer  the 
name  symplegmata  to  that  of  grylli  (crickets)  by  which  they 
are  commonly  known  and  which  was  probably  derived  from 
the  man-cricket  pictures  referred  to  above  and  which  still 
remained  popular,  because,  while  the  insect  is  sometimes  a 
feature  in  these  figures,  I  think  there  is  good  reason  to  believe 
that  the  bases  of  the  two  ideas  are  quite  distinct.  Still,  “grylli” 
is  the  more  generally  accepted  name  and  I  shall  use  it  for  that 
reason.  It  is  probable  that  the  zodiacal  element  may  have  been 
at  the  bottom  of  these  symplegmata  or,  perhaps,  some  of  the 
mystic  cosmogonies.  For  instance,  the  Orphic  cult  held  that 
water  and  earth  were  the  first  principles  of  creation  and  that 
from  their  union  sprang  a  being  having  the  body  of  a  serpent 
with  the  heads  of  a  man,  a  bull  and  a  lion.  This  being,  named 
Herakles  or  Chronos,  laid  an  egg  out  of  which  came  the  first¬ 
born  god,  Phanes,  and  from  the  halves  of  the  shell  were 
formed  Heaven  and  Earth. 

Whatever  their  origin,  however,  there  is  little  doubt  that 
it  was  unknown  or  lost  sight  of  by  the  numerous  wearers  whose 
thought  is  probably  best  voiced  by  Plutarch  where  he  says: 
“The  objects  that  are  fastened  up  as  a  means  to  keep  off  witch¬ 
craft  derive  their  efficacy  from  the  fact  that  they  act  through 
the  strangeness  and  ridiculousness  of  their  forms  which  fix  the 


SUBJECTS 


119 


mischief-making  evil  eye  upon  themselves,”  a  fancy  of  the 
vitality  of  which  we  find  abundant  evidence  in  the  amulets 
worn  by  the  lower  class  of  modern  Italians.  The  lack  of 
imagination  in  the  designing  of  these  latter  is  typical  of  the 
artistic  fall  of  the  race. 

Coming  to  their  composition,  the  Seilenos  (Besa?)  mask, 
itself  a  powerful  amulet,  seems  to  be  the  central  idea  of  many ; 
this  for  the  breast,  with  head,  tail  and  legs  of  peacocks,  roosters, 
cranes,  horses,  rams  or  elephants  grouped  around  it  in  all 
manner  of  weird  combinations.  Palm  branches,  ears  of  wheat, 
horns  of  plenty,  dolphins  and  sea-horses — all  luck-bringing  in 
themselves  and,  doubtless,  considered  much  more  so  in  com¬ 
bination — were  added  and  worked  into  the  designs,  often  with 
considerable  ingenuity.  The  Greek  Hippolectryon  or  horse- 
rooster,  probably  derived  from  Carthage,  was  another  popular 
central  motive;  also  the  foreparts  of  lions  or  elephants  coming 
out  of  snail  shells,  and  every  manner  of  absurdity  in  the  way 
of  mask,  animal  and  symbol  combination  (PI.  XXI,  12,  15; 
XXVI,  6—8,  13;  XXVII,  2—5). 

With  the  Hadrianic  revival  we  find,  in  view  of  that 
emperor’s  interest  in  astrology  and  the  cults  of  Egypt,  an 
increase  in  the  number  of  gems  that  owe  their  origin  to  such 
sources.  Also  Egyptian  deities  often  appear  on  Roman  signets, 
frequently  with  attributes  of  Greek  or  Roman  gods,  such  as  the 
jackal-headed  Anubis  with  the  palm  branch  of  Victory  and  the 
caduceus  of  Hermes,  his  psychopompic  office  leading  naturally 
to  his  identification  with  the  latter  god  (See  also  the  figure, 
PI.  XXVI,  5).  Princesses  had  their  portraits  cut  with  attri¬ 
butes  of  Isis,  such  as  the  lotos  flower;  and  the  child,  Horus, 
the  Harpokrates  of  the  Greeks,  appears  very  commonly  as  a 
god  of  silence  with  his  finger  at  his  lips  and  a  cornucopia, 
especially  throughout  the  eastern  provinces  of  the  Empire  (PI. 
XXI,  11).  Most  common  of  all,  especially  in  bust  representa¬ 
tions,  is  Jupiter  Serapis,  indicated  by  the  modius  or  corn 
measure  on  his  head,  as  the  lord  of  the  subterranean  world  and 
its  treasures,  his  influence  as  a  corn-god  and  over  the  fortunes 
of  the  future  life  or  death  being  recognized,  as  was  that  of 


120 


GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


Hermes,  down  to  the  end  of  paganism,  as  the  dispenser  of 
riches  to  be  won  by  commerce  and  trade  (Pl.  XXI,  17 ;  XXII,  9). 

The  Gnostic  superstitions  and  the  talismans  and  amulets 
born  of  them  had  their  origin  during  this  epoch  but  it  seems 
to  me  better  to  treat  them  under  the  next  when  the  number 
of  such  gems  increased  so  enormously  as  practically  to  drive 
out  most  of  the  earlier  superstitions. 

Inscriptions. — The  majority  of  these  still  refer  to  owners’ 
names  (PI.  XXV,  9,  17,  18;  XXVI,  4,  20;  XXVII,  1).  Furt- 
wangler’s  apparent  statement  to  the  contrary  probably  refers 
rather  to  gems  of  the  better  class  upon  which  we  find  a  much 
larger  number  of  artists’  signatures  than  at  any  other  time. 
Where  the  owner’s  name  appears  with  a  fine  intaglio  it  is  apt 
to  be  in  Greek  lettering  or  indicated  by  an  initial  rather  than 
a  coarse  Latin  ligature.  Occasionally,  too,  a  motto  or  senti¬ 
ment  of  some  kind  may  be  dated  here  and,  very  rarely,  a  de¬ 
scriptive  legend.  The  letters,  ANTI,  on  a  large  broken  portrait 
head  of  Antinous  do  not  fall  under  ring-stone  strictures,  while 
the  MARS  VLTOR  beside  an  evident  copy  of  the  statue  of 
the  god  in  the  Augustan  temple  may,  perhaps,  be  explained  by 
the  eagerness  of  the  owner  to  identify  his  representation.  Also 
we  find  a  M  A  R  V I C  (to  Mars  Victor )  with  a  picture  of  a  youth, 
perhaps  a  genius,  offering  a  figure  of  Victory  to  a  statue  of 
Mars,  and  a  Venus  Victrix  with  her  name  in  both  Greek  and 
Latin.  Gift  and  votive  inscriptions,  various  good  wishes  to 
beloved  persons  and  amorous  legends  also  occur  both  now  and 
later.  It  is,  however,  the  artists’  signatures  which,  from  the 
standpoint  of  interest,  are  by  far  the  most  important  inscrip¬ 
tions  on  these  gems. 

Artists. — Among  them  wre  may  provisionally  place  Soso- 
kles  as  the  earliest,  from  a  beautiful  Medousa  head  with  wings, 
signed,  CUICOCA6,  in  flowing  Hellenistic  script  (PI.  XXI,  4) ; 
then  Solon,  who  seems,  however,  to  have  worked  rather  longer 
and  to  have  been  a  contemporary  of  Dioskourides,  with  his  Dio- 
medes  stealing  the  Palladium,  signed,  COAUJN  €00161,  his  Me¬ 
dousa  head,  signed,  30AQN0C,  (PI.  XX,  8),  which,  by  the  by,  has 
been  pretty  strongly  doubted,  and  a  violet  paste  copy  of  one 


ARTISTS 


121 


of  his  works:  a  nymph’s  head  and  breast  with  panther  skin 
thrown  around  her.  She  carries  a  rod  or  thyrsus  and  the 
lettering  reads,  COAQN.  Also  there  is  a  Hercules  signed, 
COAQNOC.  Apollonios,  whose  Artemis  is  signed,  AnOAAQNlOY, 
seems  also  to  be  one  of  the  earlier  artists.  Foremost  among 
the  gem-cutters  of  the  Augustan  Age  stands  Dioskourides,  who 
cut  the  portrait  of  Augustus  himself.  This  gem  has  remained 
undiscovered  though  Reinach  claims  that  a  head  of  the  Emperor 
on  a  carnelian  is  the  work  of  this  master  as,  also,  an  amethyst 
portrait  of  Maecenas.  We  have  certainly,  however,  several 
others :  a  Diomedes,  signed,  AIOCKOYPIAOY  (PI.  XX,  5),  two 
Hermes  (PI.  XX,  2),  a  beautiful  female  head  and  a  portrait 
bust  of  Demosthenes.  On  all  of  these  the  signature  is  the  same 
with  the  exception  of  variations  in  the  style  of  lettering,  par¬ 
ticularly  on  one  of  the  Hermes  (A I OC I : OY I  IAOY).  Dioskourides 
cannot  be  said  to  have  been  an  originator  of  ideas  as,  in  fact, 
were  few  if  any  of  his  contemporaries.  He  was  a  tasteful 
classicist,  borrowing  his  subjects  from  the  best  examples  of 
an  older  art  but  treating  them  in  his  own  way.  He  seems  to 
have  come  to  Rome  from  Aigeai  in  Kilikia  with  his  three  sons, 
Eutyches,  Hyllos,  and  Herophilos,  all  of  whom  followed  his 
craft  and  have  left  us  examples  of  their  work.  Of  the  first  we 
have  the  head  and  upper  part  of  the  body  of  an  Athena  which 
bears,  in  four  lines,  the  unusually  detailed  signatory  inscrip¬ 
tion,  6'YTYXHC  AIOCKOYPIAOY  AITCAIOC  €nOI€l.  Of  Hyllos, 
the  second  son,  we  have  a  Theseus  (or  Hercules)  (PI. 
XX,  14)  and  a  bust  of  Apollo  (PI.  XX,  3),  each  signed, 
YAAOY;  also  a  cameo  signed,  YAAOC  AIOCKOYPIAOY  CnOIEI. 
The  third,  Herophilos,  is  known  only  by  a  cameo  head 
of  Tiberius,  the  signature  on  which  also  tells  that  the 
artist  was  a  son  of  Dioskourides.  Aspasios  was  apparently 
a  contemporary  of  Dioskourides.  His  bust  of  the  Athena 
Parthenos  of  Pheidias  (PI.  XX,  9)  and  his  Herm  of  the 
bearded  Dionysos  (PI.  XX,  13)  show  great  delicacy  if  no 
originality  and  bear  the  signature,  ACnAClOY.  Agathangelos, 
too,  lived  early  in  the  period.  His  portrait  head  of  Sextus 
Pompey  (PI.  XX,  6)  bears  the  signature,  AT AOANTCAOY.  Gaius 


122 


GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


seems,  also,  rather  early.  His  head  of  the  dog,  Sirius,  reads, 
TAIOC  enoiei,  and  Polykleitos  evidently  comes  after  Dioskou- 
rides  with  a  Diomedes  with  the  Palladium.  d>HAI E  €noi€l,  in 
two  lines  on  a  picture  of  Odysseus  and  Diomedes  with  the  Pal¬ 
ladium,  tells  the  name  of  Felix,  an  artist  whose  close  dating  is 
more  uncertain,  as  is  also  that  of  the  following  names :  Gnseus, 
with  a  youthful  Hercules  head  (PI.  XX,  1)  inscribed,  TNAIOC, 
and  equal  to  the  best  of  Dioskourides,  a  Diomedes  (TNAIOY),  a 
Melpomene  (-NAIOY)  (PI.  XXI,  1),  and  an  athlete  anointing 
himself  with  oil  (rNAlOY)  (PI.  XX,  4)  ;  Dalion,  with  a  youth¬ 
ful  head  inscribed,  AAAION,  and  a  Nereid  riding  a  sea-horse, 
inscribed,  AAAIQN;  Kleon?  with  an  Amazon’s  head  broken  in 
two  and  inscribed,  KA€  f ,  the  rest  of  the  name  being  lost  with 
the  missing  half  of  the  stone;  Aulus,  with  a  nymph’s  head 
and  bust  (AYAOV),  an  Aphrodite  and  Eros  (AYAOC)  (PI.  XX, 
10),  a  bust  of  a  young  satyr  (AYAOY),  a  Cupid  bound  before 
a  trophy  (AYAOY)  (PL  XXI,  3),  an  athlete  (AYAOC),  and 
others.  The  style  and  merit  of  these  cuttings  are  very  uneven, 
and  Furtwangler  considers  that  this  weakness  of  the  artist 
has  led  to  the  frequent  forging  of  his  signature.  I  have  fol¬ 
lowed  Furtwangler’s  attributions  in  the  above  gems  in  the 
absence  of  an  opportunity  to  examine  the  stones  themselves, 
but  it  is  proper  to  say  that  the  existence  of  Aulus  has  been 
disputed  altogether  by  several  of  the  earlier  authorities. 

Then  there  are  Quintus,  signed  in  Greek,  as  Koivxo?,  on 
a  fragment  of  a  cameo  which  shows  the  legs  of  an  armed  man 
walking;  Lucius,  also  in  Greek,  as  Aenxios,  on  a  two-horse 
chariot;  Anteros,  signed,  ANT6PUJTOC,  on  a  Hercules  carrying 
a  bull  (PI.  XX,  7) ;  Teukros  (TCYN-OY),  on  a  Hercules  with 
a  nymph;  Philemon  (<1>IAHM0N0C),  on  a  Theseus  with  the  slain 
Minotaur,  a  cameo;  Pamphilos  (flAMMAOY),  on  a  seated 
Aehilleus  playing  the  lyre  (PI.  XX,  15) ;  Agathemeros,  with  a 
head  of  a  philosopher,  perhaps  Sokrates  (ATAGHMG  behind 
the  head  and  POC  under  it)  ;  Skylax  (CKYAAZ  and  CKYAAKOC) 
on  a  dancing  satyr  and  on  a  cameo  with  a  youthful  Hercules 


ARTISTS 


123 


playing  the  lyre,  and  Sostratos  (CQCTPATOY),  on  two  cameos 
and  on  a  Nike  sacrificing  a  bull  (PL  XX,  12). 

The  latest  of  this  group  of  artists,  in  fact  the  latest  known 
signature,  for  the  custom  seems  to  have  died  out  under  the 
Flavian  emperors,  is  Evodos  whose  bust  portrait  of  Julia, 
daughter  of  Titus,  is  signed,  GYOAOC  6TTOI6I,  (PL  XX,  11). 

Tryphon,  whose  art  Addaios,  the  poet,  has  commemorated 
in  an  epigram,  appears  to  have  been  the  court  gem-engraver  of 
Polemon,  king  of  Pontos,  himself  evidently  a  connoisseur.  Of 
his  presumptive  wrork  we  have  the  famous  Marlborough  cameo 
picturing  the  marriage  procession  of  Cupid  and  Psyche  and 
bearing  the  inscription,  TPY4>QN  €110161.  In  spite  of  Furt- 
wangler’s  endorsement  I  feel  an  instinctive  suspicion  of  this 
signature.  It  is  engraved  in  intaglio  on  a  cameo,  an  easy  and 
common  method  of  modern  interpolation,  and  the  epigram 
might  readily  have  suggested  the  name. 

Other  artists,  known  to  us  only  from  cameos  but  who  may 
well  have  cut  intaglios  also,  are  Rufus,  Diodotos,  Saturninus, 
and  Epitynchanos,  and  to  the  entire  list  may  perhaps  be  added 
the  names  of  Mykon  and  Pliarnakes,  on  the  authority  of  Rei- 
nach,  and  Koinos  on  that  of  Brunn  and  King. 

It  should,  however,  be  said  that  many  of  the  names  given 
above  have  been  disputed  and  more  or  less  seriously  questioned 
by  earlier  authorities,  either  as  being  names  of  owners  or 
recently  interpolated  signatures,  and,  in  some  cases,  the  sus¬ 
picion  has  extended  to  the  genuineness  of  the  gem  itself. 
Briefly  I  may  say  that  the  existence  of  the  artists  Agathangelos, 
Anteros,  Aulus,  Gaius,  Gnseus,  Lucius,  Philemon,  Polycleitos, 
Scylax,  Sosokles,  and  Sostratos  has  been  disputed  and  these 
are  placed  by  Dr.  Brunn’s  catalogue,  as  edited  by  King,  in  the 
doubtful  list.  Their  list  of  names,  certainly  not  artist  signa¬ 
tures,  includes  Agathemeros  and  Quintus. 

In  commenting  on  this  it  must  be  remembered  that  Brunn’s 
catalogue  was  published  in  1859,  in  the  full  heat  of  the  reaction 
against  the  Poniatowski  forgeries.  Kohler,  too,  upon  whose 
authority  much  of  the  catalogue  depends,  while  rather  a  pro¬ 
phet  than  a  disciple  of  the  reaction,  was  certainly  an  extremist 


124 


GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


in  his  theories.  He  denied  all  artists’  signatures  except  those 
of  Athenian,  Apolldnios,  Evodos,  Protarchos  and  Epitynchanos, 
and  allowed  these  on  but  one  gem  each.  Much  has  been 
learned  since  his  day  and  much  since  Brunn’s.  I  cannot  say 
that  I  am  free  from  a  feeling  that  Furtwangler  is  himself 
inclined,  sometimes,  to  be  just  a  trifle  too  certain  of  his  ground 
in  what  is,  at  the  best,  the  most  theoretical  and  uncertain  side 
of  the  whole  subject.  Still,  his  equipment  and  opportunities 
for  exhaustive  study  of  the  matter  in  the  light  of  the  latest 
knowledge  were  unequalled,  and  his  conclusions  in  so  many 
cases  seem  to  me  well  founded  that  I  consider  his  list  of  artists 
the  only  one  at  present  worthy  to  be  described  as  tentatively 
authoritative.  I  may  add  that,  as  a  matter  of  personal  opinion, 
I  attach  no  weight  whatever  to  the  earlier  criticisms  of  the 
identity  of,  at  least,  Skylax,  Sosokles  and  Agathemeros. 

Let  me  refer,  in  closing  the  matter,  to  the  comments  I 
have  already  made  on  artists’  signatures  of  the  Hellenistic 
Period  with  reference  to  the  possibility  or  probability  of  the 
name  of  a  supposed  gem-engraver  being  really  that  of  an 
owner.  The  presence  of  the  ejtoiei  of  course  means  the 
artist  or  a  fraud,  the  genitive  may  as  wTell  indicate  owner  as 
artist;  so,  also,  the  nominative.  As  a  corroborating  circum¬ 
stance,  the  occurrence  of  the  same  name  on  two  gems  that, 
judged  by  their  character,  may  be  from  the  same  hand  is,  when 
this  evidence  be  not  weakened  by  the  commonness  of  the  name 
itself,  a  strong  argument.  Furtwangler  does  or  does  not  attach 
much  importance  to  differences  in  the  lettering,  as  he  tries  to 
make  his  point.  Sometimes  he  seems  very  free  and,  again, 
most  rigid.  Personally  I  think  that  unless  some  special  reason 
for  a  difference  appears — such,  for  instance,  as  space  considera¬ 
tions, — serious  variations  in  signatures  should  count  against 
their  being  those  of  the  same  artist.  For  the  rest,  what  I  have 
said  before  applies  equally  here.  Each  case  must  be  passed 
upon  on  its  merits,  bearing  well  in  mind  the  enormous  number 
of  forged  signatures,  both  of  the  apparently  authentic  names 
given  above  and  of  a  host  of  others  culled  by  diligent  seekers 
from  Pliny  and  other  sources. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE— CHRISTIAN  GEMS.- 
MITHRAIC  AND  GNOSTIC  TALISMANS 

With  the  accession  of  Commodus  the  decline  of  the  glyptic 
art  had  definitely  set  in  and,  save  for  a  very  limited  and  flicker¬ 
ing  revival  under  Constantine,  progressed  to  the  end.  The 
second  century  A.  D.  strove  feebly  to  preserve  good  traditions, 
and  there  were  still  a  few  pretty  good  portraits,  but  the  numer¬ 
ous  pictures  of  protecting  deities  and  their  symbols,  still  used 
for  signets  and  talismans,  or  of  animals  and  genre  subjects  show 
a  dull  uniformity  and  an  utter  lack  of  originality  or  merit,, 
together  with  feeble  and  sketchy  workmanship  which  grades 
down  to  the  representation  of  a  figure  by  a  few  strokes  of  the 
wheel  ploughed  roughly  into  the  stone  (PI.  XXVII,  1,  13,  14; 
XXVIII,  13, 15, 18—21 ;  XXIX,  1—3, 7—9 ) .  The  drill  was  little 
used.  If  a  talisman  or  amulet  was  wanted,  it  was  the  subject 
rather  than  the  execution  of  it  that  counted,  while,  as  for  the 
signets,  there  seems  to  have  been  no  art  public  that  recognized 
or  cared  for  the  best  work.  As  in  all  decaying  civilizations, 
ostentation  and  the  desire  for  ornaments  that  were  at  once 
showy  and  expensive  led  to  the  profuse  wearing  of  pearls  and 
jewels,  and  the  delicate  art  of  the  gem-cutter  found  no  patrons. 
With  the  exception  of  the  Gnostic  amulets,  many  of  which  were 
quite  large,  and  a  very  few  large  stones  intended  for  ornaments, 
all  were  ring-stones,  usually  with  a  flat  picture  surface  but 
sometimes  slightly  convex. 

Materials. — These  remained  very  much  as  in  the  preceding 
epoch.  Carnelian  was  commonest  and,  next,  chalcedony.  Nic- 
olo  and  plasma  held,  and  all  the  jaspers,  red,  yellow,  green, 
mottled,  and  red-spotted  (heliotrope),  enjoyed  an  increasing 

125 


126 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


vogue,  doubtless  because  magical  qualities  were  attributed  to 
the  stones  themselves.  Amethyst,  agate,  garnet,  sard,  sardonyx, 
usually  cut  horizontally,  and  rock-crystal  were  rarer.  Hematite, 
a  powerful  amulet  stone  among  the  Gnostics,  became  popular  for 
their  crude  representations  and  lapis  lazuli  was  quite  common. 
This  stone  was  also  used  freely  by  certain  gem-cutters  of  the 
sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries  who  engraved  on  it  antique 
subjects  and  whose  rough  work  resembles  so  closely  that  of  the 
decaying  Empire  that  gems  of  this  material  must  be  regarded 
with  the  most  cautious  suspicion.  Pastes  were  practically 
things  of  the  past. 

Subjects. — Crude  figures  of  deities  were  much  in  evidence 
(PI.  XXVIII,  17 — 19 ;  XXIX,  7 — 9),  constant  repetitions  of  the 
same  conventional  poses,  many  of  them  taken  originally  from  the 
statue  types.  Fortuna  and  Victory  are  by  far  the  commonest 
(PI.  XXIX,  7,  17) ;  then  Nemesis,  Mercury  (See  PL  XXIII, 

16) ,  Jupiter  enthroned  or  standing  (See  PI.  XXIII,  11,  19), 
Serapis,  usually  as  a  bust  (See  PI.  XXI,  17 ;  XXII,  9),  Minerva 
(PL  XXVIII,  18),  Ceres  (See  Pl.  XXIII,  2),  Venus,  generally 
the  Victrix  type  (See  PL  XXIII,  21),  Mars  (See  Pl.  XXIII, 
22,  23),  Bacchus  (Pl.  XXVIII,  17),  Diana  (Pl.  XXVIII,  19), 
Neptune  (See  Pl.  XXIII,  20)  and  all  the  rest.  Sometimes 
several  are  represented  together  (Pl.  XXVIII,  21;  XXIX,  7, 

17) ,  and  some  of  the  types  with  combined  attributes  are  not 
easy  to  identify,  especially  when  they  are  so  badly  done  that 
it  is  hard  to  say  just  what  the  artist  tried  to  cut. 

Besides  these,  were  representations  of  callings  and  occupa¬ 
tions  (Pl.  XXIX,  2),  the  games  of  the  circus  (Pl.  XXVII,  13), 
masks,  combined  masks  (PL  XXVIII,  13),  symbols  (Pl. 
XXVII,  1;  XXVIII,  16;  XXIX,  4,  5),  grylli  (Pl.  XXVII,  2- 
5),  astronomical  figures  (PL  XXIX,  1,  4,  10,  11),  and  animals 
(Pl.  XXVIII,  14;  XXIX,  3).  Subjects  from  the  epics  were 
rarely  chosen,  another  evidence  of  the  decline  of  artistic  feeling 
(Pl.  XXVII,  11,  15).  One  of  the  few  literary  gems  of  the 
period  shows  the  combat  between  the  pigmies  and  the  cranes 
(Pl.  XXVII,  12).  Generally  speaking,  either  luck  had  to  be 


PORTRAITS— CHRISTIAN  GEMS 


127 


invoked  by  some  fantastic  design  or  they  fell  back  on  the  com¬ 
monplace. 

Portraits  of  the  wearer  or  of  some  one  he  desired  to  com¬ 
pliment  were,  however,  still  favorites  as  signets  (PI.  XXVIII, 
1 — 12)  and,  as  I  have  said  above,  the  work  on  these  was  better 
than  on  the  subject  pieces.  Whether  a  man  wanted  a  portrait 
of  himself  or  of  another,  he  wanted  one  that  could  be  recognized 
or  its  value  would  be  lessened  or  lost,  and,  doubtless,  this  need 
brought  it  about  that  portraiture  retained  much  of  its  merit 
when  other  forms  of  art  were  practically  dead.  The  coinage 
of  the  period  bears  out  this  contention.  They  put  their  best 
efforts  on  these  gems  and  they,  at  least,  tried  to  get  a  likeness, 
even  when  their  limitations  left  the  workmanship  crude.  This 
was  the  case  even  in  a  gem  in  which  the  portraiture  idea  was 
subsidiary:  the  Commodus  hunting,  which  is  not  at  all  bad 
(PI.  XXVII,  19).  The  famous  sapphire  seal  of  Constantius  II, 
referred  to  in  the  Introduction,  dates  from  the  first  half  of  the 
fourth  century  and  is,  as  might  be  expected,  the  finest  example 
we  have  of  the  engraving  of  its  time.  Also  it  is  characteristic 
in  its  elaborate  picture  idea,  and  the  K6CAPIA  KATUTAAOKIA 
under  the  figure  of  the  genius  representing  that  city,  is  another 
of  the  rare  cases  of  descriptive  inscriptions.  At  last,  however, 
even  portraiture  failed  and  barbarism  reigned  supreme. 

CHRISTIAN  SUBJECTS 

With  the  rapid  advance  of  Christianity  we  may  now  expect 
to  find  Christian  gems,  though  these  are  not  very  numerous 
(PI.  XXVIII,  10;  XXIX,  6,  12).  There  were  a  few  in  the 
preceding  epoch:  such  symbols  as  the  anchor,  taken  from  the 
coinage  of  Asmonsean  kings  of  Judea  and,  perhaps,  adopted 
on  account  of  its  resemblance  to  the  cross.  The  direct  repre¬ 
sentation  of  the  latter  was  not  in  accord  with  the  taste  for 
more  recondite  symbolism.  Besides,  in  the  earlier  times,  its  use 
as  a  signet  may  have  been  looked  upon  as  irreverent.  Certainly 
it  would  have  been  dangerous  in  periods  of  persecution,  and 
most  Christians  did  not  invite  martyrdom.  The  lyre  was 


128 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


favored,  as  symbolizing  harmony  and  concord,  the  ship,  gen¬ 
erally  with  the  Chrisma  for  a  mast,  symbolized  the  voyage 
through  life  to  a  better  land.  Sometimes,  oddly  enough,  a  cock 
appears  as  a  passenger.  He  carries  a  palm  branch  and  is  sup¬ 
posed  to  represent  the  soul  of  man  triumphant.  The  dove  had 
its  obvious  connection  with  the  Saviour’s  life  in  the  manifesta¬ 
tion  of  his  divinity,  and,  also,  the  Kabbalistic  sum  of  the  num¬ 
eral  letters  in  the  Greek  word,  TcegiaTepd  (dove),  was  801, 
identical  with  that  of  Alpha  and  Omega,  which  the  Lord  had 
called  himself.  Lastly,  the  fisherman  was  pictured,  because 
his  occupation  suggested  to  the  believer  “  Little  children  drawn 
up  out  of  the  water.” 

To  these  five  symbolic  signets  Clemens  Alexandrinus  (III, 
11),  writing  in  the  latter  half  of  the  second  century,  limited  his 
followers,  also  enjoining:  “For  we  are  not  to  delineate  the  faces 
of  idols  .  .  .  nor  a  sword  nor  a  bow  .  .  .  nor  drinking  cups. 
.  .  Many  of  the  licentious  have  their  lovers  engraved  or  their 
mistresses,  as  if  they  wished  to  make  it  impossible  ever  to 
forget  their  amatory  indulgences,  by  being  perpetually  put  in 
mind  of  their  licentiousness.”  He  does  not  mention,  in  his 
list  of  permitted  emblems,  possibly  for  some  reasons  of  his 
own,  the  wreath,  the  palm-branch  or  the  fish,  the  last  one  of 
the  commonest  of  Christian  symbols.  The  Kabbalists  gave  the 
name,  dag  (fish),  to  their  expected  Messiah  and  taught  that  the 
sign  of  his  coming  would  be  the  conjunction  of  Jupiter  and 
Saturn  in  the  sign,  Pisces,  but  to  the  Christians  the  Greek  word, 
IX0Y^,  gave  the  initials  of  the  words,  "Iriooug  Xpiaxo?  0eou 
Yiog  ScotrjQ  (Jesus  Christ,  Son  of  God,  Saviour).  Also  they 
used  the  Chrisma,  the  X  and  P  joined  as  a  monogram,  $, 
sometimes  varied  more  or  less  and  sometimes  worked  into 
other  designs.  More  rare  and  of  later  origin  are  simple  repre¬ 
sentations  of  the  cross,  though  it,  too,  is  worked  into  many  com¬ 
binations,  such  as  where  it  rests  on  a  fish,  with  doves  perched 
on  the  arms  or  where  two  fishes  hang  from  them.  The  frog 
was  a  rather  unusual  device  on  these  gems  and  typified,  by  its 
seeming  change  from  a  fish  to  a  quadruped,  the  resurrection 
of  the  soul. 


CHRISTIAN  GEMS 


129 


All  of  these  continued  in  use,  two  or  more  often  appearing 
on  the  same  gem,  but  certainly  as  early  as  the  end  of  the  second 
century  one  of  the  most  favored  of  all  was  especially  allowed 
by  Tertullian :  a  picture  of  the  Good  Shepherd  carrying  a  lamb 
and  often  with  one  or  two  sheep  beside  him  (PI.  XXIX,  6). 
In  earlier  times  this  would  have  been  regarded  as  idolatrous, 
as  was  always,  before  the  latter  part  of  the  fourth  century,  any 
attempt  at  a  direct  likeness  of  Christ.  Epiphanius,  in  his  at¬ 
tack  on  the  heresies  of  the  Carpocratian  Gnostics,  makes  this 
clear,  and  the  earliest  essays  at  divine  portraiture  on  gems 
seem  to  be  due  to  the  Nestorian  heretics  who  took  refuge  in 
Persia  under  the  Sassanian  dynasty. 

Possibly  of  about  300  A.  D.  is  a  curious  carnelian  with  a 
very  crude  picture  of  Abraham  about  to  sacrifice  Isaac,  with 
the  angel  interfering  (PI.  XXIX,  12).  On  the  upper  part  of 
the  stone  are  two  men  and  a  horse  upside  down,  perhaps  the 
servants  and  traveling  beast  of  Abraham.  In  the  fourth  century 
and  throughout  Byzantine  times  there  are  large  stones  showing 
such  pictures  as  Christ  enthroned,  sometimes  with  the  twelve 
apostles  around  him  and  done  in  the  style  characteristic  of 
Byzantine  art. 

Of  more  doubtful  origin  are  the  figures  of  Victory  that 
appear  not  very  rarely  on  Christian  gems,  sometimes  together 
with  Christian  symbols  and  once,  to  my  knowledge,  on  one 
side  of  a  stone  that  has  the  Good  Shepherd  on  the  other.  Ob¬ 
viously  the  Victory  was  the  most  adaptable  of  the  Pagan  per¬ 
sonifications,  whether  on  the  score  of  its  symbolic  inference 
or  of  the  resemblance  which,  later,  led  the  Mediaeval  interpreters 
to  regard  it  as  the  figure  of  an  angel.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is 
not  impossible  that  certain  Paganizing  Gnostics  may  have,  for 
the  same  reasons,  welcomed  it  as  an  especially  subtle  wedge 
wherewith  to  corrupt  the  imagery  of  the  orthodox.  Altogether, 
the  gems  bearing  it  cannot  but  cast  a  shadow  of  suspicion  on 
their  wearers  as  having  been  either  secret  enemies,  heretics  or, 
at  the  best,  Christians  of  a  distinctly  liberal  turn  of  mind. 

Undoubtedly  Pagan  in  its  origin,  if  not  in  its  motive,  is 
the  confusion  of  Jupiter  Serapis  with  Christ,  often  ignorantly 


130 


GEMS  OF,  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


done  by  the  old  religionists  and  deliberately  by  the  Gnostics. 
A  colorable  relation  existed  in  Serapis’  rule  over  the  Under¬ 
world  and  the  future  life,  while,  whether  as  a  result  of  the 
confusion  or  arising  from  independent  causes,  there  is  no  doubt 
that  many  of  the  later  representations  of  the  Jesus  took  form 
and  feature  from  the  calm,  benignant  face  of  the  Alexandrian 
Jove.  A  mottled  brown  jasper  engraved  with  an  anchor  and, 
on  the  reverse,  the  legend,  M  ET  All  CAP  An  1C  (Great  Serapis), 
is  an  example  of  this  mingling. 

Inscriptions. — The  inscriptions  on  stones  of  this  period 
have  no  especial  characteristics  except  that  none  of  them  is  the 
artist’s  name,  that  the  lettering  is  almost  always  crude  and 
barbaric,  and  that  they  are  often  of  considerable  length.  They 
may  be  owners’  names,  in  full  or  abbreviated  (PI.  XXVIII,  17), 
sentiments  of  some  kind,  either  independent  of  or  suggested  by 
the  design,  descriptive  legends,  such  as  the  name  on  PI.  XXVIII. 
14,  the  HPA  OYPANIA  (the  Celestial  Juno)  on  a  large  stone 
showing  the  goddess  riding  a  lion  between  the  Dioskoroi  and, 
beneath,  AMMUJNIOC  AN60HK€N6n  ArAGUJ  (Ammonios  dedi¬ 
cated  (this)  or  placed  (this)  on  for  good  (fortune)),  or  the 
APHTUi  PUJPOM ANAAPH  (I  protect  Roromandares)  with  a 
Gorgon’s  head  (PI.  XXIX,  21) ;  but  commonest  of  all  were 
words  or  combinations  of  letters  in  the  nature  of  charms, 
calculated  to  invoke  or  compel  some  supernatural  influence  in 
favor  of  the  wearer.  These  I  will  discuss  under  the  Mithraic 
and  Gnostic  Gems  which,  by  their  distinct  character  and  great 
number,  merit  separate  treatment. 

Another  of  the  more  elaborate  inscriptions  may  be  referred 
to  as  an  example  of  the  kind  of  thing  that  was  sometimes  at¬ 
tempted.  It  occurs  on  a  rather  large  stone  bearing  the  por¬ 
traits  of  a  man,  woman,  and  child,  evidently  some  Christian 
family  of  the  third  century  (PI.  XXVIII,  10),  and  is  apparent¬ 
ly  a  gift  to  the  master  of  the  house  from  some  friend.  Around 
the  top  of  the  stone  we  read,  in  fair  lettering  save  that  no 
curves  are  attempted,  Enruxt  IldvxaQi  petcc  xf\ g  Kupiag  Baai- 
Xioarjg  xal  PauMvag  ,(Good  luck  (to  you),  Pancharius,  with 
the  lady  Basilissa  and  Paulina).  Below  the  father  is  IQ  0E  and 


MITHKAIC  GEMS 


131 


below  the  mother,  C II  (els  080?— one  god ) ,  while  above  the 
child's  head  and  between  those  of  its  parents,  also  in  barbaric 
lettering,  is  the  word,  zor\  (life).  Here,  then,  are  names,  an 
invocation  of  good  fortune,  and  a  suggestion  of  the  faith  of  the 
wearer,  all  on  a  single  stone.  Generally  an  inscription  con¬ 
fines  itself  to  one  of  these  provinces. 

The  Christian  inscriptions  occur  on  gems  with  and  with¬ 
out  the  pictures  and  cover  a  pretty  wide  field.  IX0YC  is,  of 
course,  common  and  some,  such  as  XPICTC  CUJZ6  KAPfllANON 
A€nOT€  (O  Christ,  save  Carpianus  forever)  and  IHCOYC  ©£0Y 
Y I  OCT H PC  (Jesus,  Son  of  God,  keep  me),  are  obviously  the 
Christian  variants  of  the  Pagan  wish-mottoes  which  had  but 
to  do  with  the  temporal  life.  IHCOYC  alone  is  found  on  some, 
XP  on  others  (PI.  XXIX,  6),  ic  XC  (It|(Jovs  Xgiatog)  on  a 
large  picture  of  Christ  and  his  apostles,  while  many,  nat¬ 
urally,  bear  the  names  of  the  owners. 

Christian  gems  must  be  noted  as  being  one  of  the  classes 
that  were  much  imitated  in  the  days  of  forgery.  The  simplicity 
of  the  symbols,  crudeness  of  the  execution,  and  the  natural 
interest  attached  to  them  made  them  a  fruitful  field,  so  that 
both  knowledge  and  caution  are  necessary  in  passing  upon 
their  genuineness. 

MITHRAIC  GEMS 

Before  taking  up  the  consideration  of  Gnostic  glypto- 
graphs  it  is  first  in  order  to  examine  the  stones  that  evidence 
the  popularity  of  the  cult  of  the  Persian  Mithras,  first  intro¬ 
duced  in  Rome  after  the  conquest  of  Pontus  by  Pompey,  and 
which,  under  the  Empire,  attained  a  high  degree  of  popular¬ 
ity  (PI.  XXIX,  13,  14,  17—19,  23?). 

Properly  speaking,  it  was  the  modified  Zoroasterism  of 
later  Persian  times.  In  the  Zendavesta,  Ormuzd  had  been  the 
principal  of  the  good  powers,  the  first  of  the  seven  Amshas- 
pands,  and  Mithra  or  Mithras  was  the  head  of  the  twenty-seven 
Izeds  or  emanations  therefrom,  who  governed  the  heavenly 
bodies  and  the  elements  in  the  interest  of  man  and  contended 
in  his  behalf  with  the  twenty-seven  Devs,  the  corresponding 


132 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


powers  of  evil.  Mithras’  rule  was  over  the  Sun,  and  his  tran¬ 
sition  westward  and  identification  with  other  deities  was 
therefore  easy — Phanakes  in  Asia  Minor  and  Apollo  and 
Helios  in  Greece  and  Rome,  while  he  usurped,  in  a  measure, 
the  place  of  Dionysos  in  the  long  established  Dionysiac  mys¬ 
teries. 

In  Rome,  as  time  advanced,  there  were  many  modifications 
and  adaptations  of  his  esoteric  cult  ideas.  The  tendency  was 
in  the  direction  of  a  brotherhood  with  initiations  and  lodges, 
one  of  which  is  preserved  today,  almost  intact,  at  Ostia,  and 
there  seems  to  be  a  close  connection  between  many  Mithraic 
ceremonies,  running  down  through  the  secret  societies  of  the 
Middle  Ages,  and  those  of  their  professed  successors,  the  Free 
Masons.  There  were  preliminary  trials  consisting  of  twelve, 
or,  it  has  been  said,  eighty  tortures,  including  fire,  water, 
hunger,  thirst,  scourging,  and  solitude,  and  the  initiation  is 
believed  to  have  comprised  seven  degrees  called  respectively 
the  ravens,  the  secret,  the  fighters,  the  lions,  the  Persians,  the 
Sun-runners,  and  the  fathers.  On  the  other  hand,  there  was 
much  that  was  akin  to  the  ideas  and  ceremonies  of  Christianity. 
Mithras,  as  the  first  and  greatest  emanation  of  the  supreme 
Ormuzd,  furnished  a  close  parallel  to  Christ,  and  the  ritual 
included  both  baptism  and  a  eucharistic  feast,  all  of  which  goes 
far  to  explain  the  prominent  place  taken  by  Mithrasism  in  the 
evolution  of  the  somewhat  later  development  of  the  different 
Gnostic  sects.  In  the  times  of  Hadrian  and  several  of  the 
princes  that  followed  him  the  Mithraic  brotherhood  became 
both  fashionable  and  powerful. 

Under  such  conditions  we  would  naturally  expect  to  find 
many  gems  reflecting  the  cult  and,  at  the  same  time,  throwing 
light  upon  its  ideas  and  superstitions.  These  are,  indeed,  fairly 
numerous  and  some  of  them,  in  contradistinction  to  the  Gnostic 
works,  show  a  very  fair  degree  of  technical  skill.  Art,  of 
course,  is  a  thing  neither  to  be  looked  for  nor  found. 

The  substances  used  are  almost  invariably  the  different 
jaspers,  green,  yellow,  and  mottled,  or  the  heliotrope  or  blood¬ 
stone.  The  subjects  include,  first  of  all,  the  lion,  as  typifying 


MITHRAIC  GEMS 


133 


the  Sun  (PL  XXIX,  23),  either  pulling  down  a  bull  (Pl. 
XXIX,  13)  or  carrying  its  head  in  his  jaws  (PI.  XXIX,  14) 
to  indicate  supremacy  over  the  Earth  which,  in  Mithraic  sym¬ 
bolism,  is  represented  by  a  bull.  The  serpent,  in  the  East  the 
personification  of  the  powers  of  evil,  is  sometimes  shown  tram¬ 
pled  under  the  feet  of  the  lion  or  of  a  youth  in  a  Persian  cap, 
a  representation  of  Mithras  himself  who,  again,  is  often  pic¬ 
tured  plunging  a  sword  into  a  bull  to  symbolize  the  rays  that 
pierce  into  the  bosom  of  the  Earth  and  slay  that  they  may 
fructify.  The  dog  that  is  sometimes  introduced  licking  up  the 
blood  is  rather  more  difficult  to  interpret  but  may  have  refer¬ 
ence  to  the  doctrine  of  fructification,  the  dog  being  the  most 
venerated  of  animals  among  the  modern  Parsees,  descendants 
of  the  Persians.  The  star  with  eight  points  was  also  a  solar 
emblem  of  the  cult,  and  all  these  are  often  worked  into  rather 
elaborate  designs  involving  zodiacal  and  astrological  ideas, 
often  difficult  to  co-ordinate  and  interpret.  Other  symbols  are, 
also,  sometimes  introduced,  as,  on  one  gem,  three  ears  of  wheat 
at  the  end  of  the  bull’s  tail,  perhaps  in  allusion  to  the  life-giv¬ 
ing  plants  that,  according  to  Zend  tradition,  sprang  from  the 
tail  of  the  Primeval  Bull  slain  by  Ahriman,  the  principle  of 
evil.  Altogether  it  is  easy  to  imagine  the  study  that  can  be 
devoted  to  and  the  information  to  be  gained  from  these  gems. 

The  rising  and  setting  of  the  divine  orb  is  symbolized  some¬ 
times  by  two  torches,  one  raised  and  one  lowered  in  the  hands 
of  Mithras,  or,  again,  by  ascending  and  descending  chariots. 
A  naked  female  figure  bearing  the  raised  and  lowered  torches, 
rudely  cut  on  a  curiously  speckled  agate  in  my  possession  (PI. 
XXIX,  19),  may,  I  have  thought,  have  reference  to  worship  of 
Venus  Mylitta,  under  the  name  of  Mitra,  the  morning  star, 
and  which  Herodotos  tells  was  introduced  into  Persia  through 
Assyria.  She  was  a  genius  presiding  over  love  and  directing 
the  harmonious  movements  of  the  other  planets. 

Another  class  of  gems  appear  to  refer  to  the  ceremonies 
of  initiation,  such  as  a  lion  standing  over  a  prostrate  man  and 
a  not  uncommon  representation  of  a  man  bound  to  a  column 
upon  which  is  a  griffin,  sacred  to  Apollo  (later  identified  with 


134 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


Mithras),  with  its  paw  on  a  wheel.  In  the  field  is  sometimes 
the  word,  AIKAIQI  (justly).  On  a  gem  in  my  possession  (PL 
XXIX,  18)  a  Cupid  is  substituted  for  the  initiate  and  may  be 
a  conception  of  some  irreverent  victim  of  love  who  thus  makes 
jest,  at  once  of  his  own  or  his  neighbor’s  creed  and  of  his  amor¬ 
ous  sorrows.  As  a  suggestion  of  what  the  twelve  degrees  of 
Mithraic  initiation  were  like  we  read  that  the  trials  extended 
over  forty  days,  in  curious  analogy  with  the  Christian  Lenten 
season  of  self-denial.  The  candidate  lay  naked  on  the  snow, 
he  was  scourged,  and  tests  with  the  four  elements  were  part 
of  his  ordeal.  It  is  probable  that  much  which  seems  abstruse 
on  the  gems  may  be  susceptible  of  explanation  in  this  connec¬ 
tion. 

However,  as  I  have  said  above,  Mithrasism  at  Rome,  doubt¬ 
less  corrupt  from  the  first,  tended  to  slip  farther  and  farther 
afield,  and  we  find  so  many  of  its  ideas  adopted  by  the  Gnostics 
that  the  combinations  are  often  very  confusing. 

The  purpose  of  these  gems  was  primarily  to  invoke  magic¬ 
working  influences  and  to  serve  as  credentials  for  members  of 
the  brotherhood.  The  signet  idea  also  remained  but  it  is  rather 
doubtful  if  the  wearers  could  have  regarded  many  of  them  as 
ornaments. 

GNOSTIC  GEMS 

Coming  now  to  a  consideration  of  Gnosticism  and  the  vast 
number  of  gems  that  bear  witness  to  its  many  sects,  their 
numerous  adherents  and  wide  influence  on  the  thought  and 
superstitions  of  the  times,  we  find,  at  the  outset,  many  theories 
to  explain  their  origin  and  development. 

Considering  the  great  number  of  these  sects  that  made 
head,  at  one  time  or  another,  and  their  varying  tenets,  it  is 
not  difficult  to  conceive  that  all  the  given  explanations  are 
well  founded.  It  has  been  the  fashion  to  regard  them  as  mere 
Christian  heresies,  inspired  either  by  honest  divergence  or  by 
a  deliberate  scheme  on  the  part  of  expiring  Paganism  to  con¬ 
quer  its  otherwise  invincible  rival  by  subtly  corrupting  it.  Both 
assertions  are,  I  think,  true  as  to  certain  of  the  Gnostics,  but 


GNOSTIC  GEMS 


135 


I  believe  them  to  be  later  phases  of  a  movement  the  origin  and 
motives  of  which  had  their  roots  in  older  creeds  and  newer 
World  tendencies. 

Generally  speaking,  we  find  in  Gnosticism  a  mingling  of 
the  religion  of  ancient  Egypt,  Mithrasism,  Neo-Platonic  phil¬ 
osophy,  the  Kabbala,  and  Christianity,  with  probably  a  less 
direct  influence  from  Buddhism.  These  elements  varied  widely 
in  their  control  in  the  different  schools  or  sects  of  the  Gnosis. 
The  result  was  a  sort  of  aristocratic  pantheism  that  arrogated 
to  its  adepts  all  good  here  and  hereafter,  as  the  result  of 
knowledge  of  the  truth  and  of  the  proper  means  of  employing 
it  and  which,  by  its  arrogated  authority  and  power,  found 
ready  and  wide  popularity  at  a  period  when  credulity,  supersti¬ 
tion,  and  reliance  on  magic-working  substances  and  formulae 
were  at  their  highest  flood. 

Of  course,  amid  such  a  farrago,  there  is  always  the  element 
of  conscious  or  unconscious  charlatanry  as  a  militant  motive, 
and  this  we  seem  to  find  in  the  Samaritan,  Simon  Magus,  per¬ 
haps  the  earliest  proponent  of  what  could  be  called  Gnostic 
ideas,  who  dates  from  early  in  the  first  century  A.  D.  Others 
followed  him,  some,  doubtless,  sincere  fanatics,  others  sincere 
philosophers,  and  others,  again,  inspired  by  more  doubtful 
motives.  In  the  systems  of  Basileides,  who  flourished  in  Alex¬ 
andria  in  the  second  century,  and  of  his  successor  Valentinus 
we  find  the  most  complete  development  of  Gnostic  philosophy, 
and  in  Manes  or  Manichseus,  the  founder  of  the  Manichaean 
sect,  who  lived  and  died  in  the  third  century,  the  most  danger¬ 
ous  and  influential  of  the  Christian  heresiarchs :  one  whose  in¬ 
fluence  reached  to  the  Emperor  Constantine  and  who  numbered 
among  his  followers  St.  Augustine  himself,  before  that  father 
of  the  Church  turned  to  orthodoxy. 

Little  is  left  to  us  in  complete  form  of  the  many  early 
works  on  this  subject.  The  orthodox,  when  their  control  be¬ 
came  absolute,  searched  far  too  diligently  and  destroyed  too 
thoroughly  for  that;  but  in  the  Pistis  Sophia  (Faith  Wisdom), 
attributed  to  Valentinus,  we  have  one  example  of  the  gospels 
of  Gnosticism  which  may  inspire  at  once  regret  and  thanks- 


136 


GEMS  OF  THE  EATER  EMPIRE 


giving:  regret  for  the  loss  of  the  means  to  study  exhaustively 
one  of  the  most  curious  of  the  mental  emanations  of  humanity, 
and  thanksgiving  that  the  mind  is  spared  a  perusal  of  theories 
and  doctrines  a  few  pages  of  which  are  quite  sufficient  to  make 
us  wonder  whether  the  World  has  been  mad  or  we  are  becom¬ 
ing  so.  To  those  who  desire  a  more  detailed  history  of  the 
subject  I  would  suggest  Dr.  Charles  W.  King’s  book  on  The 
Gnostics  and  Their  Remains ,  a  work  which,  while  not  especial¬ 
ly  satisfactory  in  its  arrangement  and,  naturally,  far  from  ex¬ 
haustive,  will  yet  give  a  good  enough  impression  for  the  pur¬ 
poses  of  most  readers.  Our  own  province  is  the  consideration 
of  the  gem-talismans  and  amulets,  the  manufacturing  and 
wearing  of  which  was  a  highly  characteristic  manifestation  of 
these  remarkable  superstitions. 

As  the  Gnostic  idea  involved  primarily  a  conquest  and 
control  of  invisible  agencies  by  means  of  knowledge  of  the 
mystic  influence  of  substances,  forms,  and  words  of  power,  it 
is  natural  that  we  should  look  to  find  these  embodied  in  the 
shape  of  charms  convenient  for  being  carried  on  the  person. 
Many  of  the  talismans  are  too  large  for  ring-stones,  and  we 
may  easily  imagine  that  concealment  was  sometimes  held  to 
aid  attainment  of  the  desired  end.  Most  of  them,  however,  are 
of  a  suitable  size  to  set  in  rings,  and  it  is  evident  from  the  re¬ 
versed  lettering  on  many  that  they  were  used  as  signets  and 
meant  to  read  correctly  in  the  impressions.  Even  in  such  cases 
it  is  usual  to  find  both  sides  of  the  gem  engraved  with  either 
figure  or  writing,  so  that  a  part,  at  least,  of  the  talismanic 
subject  or  words  should  be  concealed  and  in  close  contact  with 
the  body  of  the  owner. 

Materials. — The  stones  used  were  those  popular  at  the 
times  when  these  gems  were  in  vogue,  but  wre  find  so  marked 
a  preference  for  hematite,  green  and  yellow  jaspers,  and  helio¬ 
trope  that  we  may  fancy  that  some  especial  virtue  was  sup¬ 
posed  to  dwell  in  these  substances.  Plasma  or  greenish  chal¬ 
cedony  was  also  sometimes  used  and  it  is  quite  possible  that 
that  color  alone  may  have  been  regarded  as  efficacious  in  some 
way.  Of  the  finer  stones  very  few  are  engraved  with  Gnostic 


GNOSTIC  GEMS 


137 


subjects.  Even  the  carnelian,  common  enough  among  the  other 
gems  of  the  period,  was  seldom  employed.  Now,  more  than 
ever,  was  the  material  held  potent:  witness  Pliny’s  'Natural 
Histo?'y,  much  of  which  might  better  be  called  “Supernatural” 
and  dates  from  the  much  earlier  time  of  the  Peri-Lithon,  one 
of  the  Orphic  books,  which  treated  of  the  magical  virtues  of 
different  stones  and  their  power  as  preservatives  against 
poisons  and  in  gaining  the  favor  of  the  gods.  Naturally,  un¬ 
der  such  conditions,  the  beauty  of  the  stone  was  of  no  more 
consequence  than  the  beauty  of  subject  or  the  art  in  the  en¬ 
graving;  an  unimportant  lack,  perhaps,  when  the  subjects  were 
necessarily  ungainly  and  the  art  of  the  engravers  nil.  Good 
work  on  fine  stones  may  pretty  safely  be  placed  as  fifteenth 
century  or  later  products,  when  the  attitude  toward  magic¬ 
working  devices  was  very  hospitable,  and  the  so-called  pierres 
d’Israel,  a  term  applied  indiscriminately  to  ancient  gems,  were 
held  to  be  talismans  of  power.  Especially  may  this  criticism 
be  made  of  the  terminal  figure  of  Osiris  and  other  Egyptian 
gods  with  Greek  or  modern  Hebrew  letters  and  astrological 
cyphers  in  the  field. 

Glass  pastes,  too,  would  not  be  considered  available  for 
talismans  the  substance  of  which  was  held  to  be  material  to 
their  influence.  Besides,  the  stones  that  were  favored  were 
cheap  enough  to  obviate  any  such  tendency. 

Subjects. — First  and  foremost  among  the  subjects  is  the 
figure  of  Abraxas  (PI.  XXIX,  20a),  sometimes  spelled  Abrasax, 
the  Pantheios  of  Gnosticism,  evolved  by  Basileides.  The  name 
is  probably  the  Greek  form  of  the  Hebrew  Ha-Brachah  (The 
Blessing)  and  is  reflected  in  “abracadabra,”  Ha-Brachah-dab- 
arah  (pronounce  the  blessing),  that  most  potent  of  mediaeval 
spells.  Both  Jerome  and  Augustine  also  state  that  Basileides 
argued  that  the  Greek  numerical  value  of  the  letters  of  the 
name  equalled  365,  the  days  of  the  year.  This  god  is  repre¬ 
sented  as  having  the  body  and  arms  of  a  man,  the  head  of  a 
cock,  and  serpents  for  legs.  On  one  arm  he  carries  a  shield 
and  in  the  other  hand,  generally,  a  whip  but,  sometimes,  a 
sword  or  dart  and,  rarely,  a  mace.  Occasionally  the  head  is 


138 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


that  of  a  hawk  or  a  lion,  but  the  significance  is  the  same.  Many: 
very  wise  and  recondite  theories  have  been  evolved  and  argued 
to  explain  the  monstrous  combination,  but  none  of  them  can  be 
called  quite  convincing.  To  venture  one,  which  has,  at  least, 
the  merit  of  being  simpler  and  more  obvious  than  the  others 
and  for  those  reasons,  judging  from  Gnostic  analogies,  is  least 
likely  to  be  correct,  I  would  suggest  that  such  a  figure  is  a  very 
reasonable  expression  of  the  Pantheistic  idea.  The  head  of  a 
bird  denotes  dominion  of  the  sky,  the  serpents,  that  of  the  Under¬ 
world  (or,  according  to  some  authorities,  water),  and  the  body 
and  arms  of  a  man  between  them,  are  those  of  the  Lord  of  the 
Earth’s  surface  whereon  men  dwell.  In  the  one  hand  he  bears 
the  shield  to  defend  himself  and  his  followers,  and,  in  the  other, 
some  weapon  to  punish  his  enemies.  It  is  all  of  the  Universe 
symbolized  in  one  figure  for  offense  and  defense.  Sabaoth 
(From  sabi,  glory,  in  Hebrew,  and  compare  Sabazios,  a  name  of 
Dionysos)  and  Adonai  (Lord)  are  also  Gnostic  titles  of  this 
deity  and  appear  occasionally  on  the  gems  (PI.  XXIX,  16) ; 
but  quite  as  frequent  as  Abraxas,  often  with  it  and  evidently 
used  either  as  a  name  or  as  descriptive  of  the  same  being,  is 
Iao,  the  ineffable  name  of  the  Jews  (PI.  XXIX,  16,  20a,  26, 
28b).  To  draw  the  line  in  such  appellatives  between  names 
and  titles  hardly  belongs  here,  but  I  am  inclined,  in  the  light 
of  the  inscriptions,  to  consider  the  last  a  broad  denomination 
of  the  supreme  God,  proclaimed  under  the  name  of  Abraxas 
by  Basileides  and  identified  with  the  sun-gods  of  all  times  and 
nations.  The  others,  as  I  have  said,  seem  to  me  in  the  nature 
of  titles  taken  from  gods  of  earlier  theologies  and  go  to  express 
the  absorption  of  their  attributes  by  the  all-powerful  one  of 
the  Gnosis.  Rarely  the  figure  has  an  ass’  head,  the  significance 
of  which  is  doubtful,  unless  it  be  in  honor  of  Tvphon. 

Second  in  frequency  on  Gnostic  gems  is  the  Agathodaimon 
(Good  Spirit)  of  the  later  Egyptians  who  also  knew  it  under 
the  name,  Cneph.  This  is  represented  as  a  serpent  having  the 
head  of  a  lion  with  a  crown  of  rays,  generally  either  seven  or 
twelve,  to  emphasize  the  idea  of  a  Sun  divinity  (PI.  XXIX,  22, 
27).  It  was  known  variously  as  XNOYMIX  (Chnumis),  XNOYBIX. 


GNOSTIC  GEMS 


139 


(Chnubis)  or  XNOY4>II  (Chnuphis),  which  also  suggests  Cneph. 
Jablonsky  derives  Chnumis  literally  from  the  Coptic  XNOYM 
(good)  and  |Z  (spirit).  This  symbolization  may  be  placed  as  of 
earlier  origin  than  the  Abraxas  figures.  The  canopic  vase,  which 
appears  sometimes  with  the  serpent  on  earlier  gems  but  probably 
not  on  later  ones,  is  explained  by  “Cnepli”  being  rendered  “Ka- 
nopos”  in  classical  Greek.  It  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the 
adoption  of  the  serpent  as  a  device  may  have  sprung  from  the 
creed  of  the  Ophites  or  Naaseni  (Serpent-worshippers),  one  of 
the  earliest  Gnostic  sects,  whose  doctrines  are  set  forth  with  con¬ 
siderable  not  unnatural  confusion  by  the  early  fathers.  Possibly 
they  were  based  on  a  distorted  notion  of  the  first  Temptation, 
which  held  the  serpent  to  be  the  dutiful  servant  of  God  appoint¬ 
ed  to  work  out  the  prescribed  destiny  of  the  human  race. 
More  probably,  however,  the  idea  had  an  earlier  origin  than 
any  of  the  developed  schools  of  the  Gnosis  and  found  its 
roots  in  the  earlier  superstitions  that  vested  the  serpent  with 
all  knowledge.  The  Brazen  serpent  raised  by  Moses  in  the 
Wilderness  gives  one  analogy,  its  connection  with  iEsculapius 
and  the  healing  art  throughout  Pagan  times  voices  the  same 
idea,  and  Galen  writes  in  the  second  century  A.  D. :  “Some  in¬ 
deed  assert  that  a  virtue  of  this  kind”  (as  an  amulet)  “is  in¬ 
herent  in  certain  stones,  such  as  it  is  certain  is  possessed  by 
the  green  jasper,  which  benefits  the  chest  and  mouth  of  the 
stomach  when  tied  on  them.  Some  indeed  set  the  stone  in  a 
ring  and  engrave  upon  it  a  serpent  with  head  crowned  with 
rays,  according  to  King  Nechepsos  in  his  thirteenth  book.”  It 
is  interesting  to  note  in  this  connection  that  green  jaspers  and 
green  chalcedonies  are  the  most  favored  substances  among  our 
gems  for  this  device  and  that  it  is  almost  always  accom¬ 
panied  by  the  triple  S  transversed  by  a  bar  (PI.  XXIX,  22), 
also  frequently  found  alone,  and  which,  again,  is  apparently  a 
mere  conventionalized  and  perhaps  purposely  obscured  repre¬ 
sentation  of  the  staff  of  Aesculapius  with  the  serpent  coiled 
about  it. 

In  addition  to  these  two,  the  commonest  among  Gnostic 
subjects,  there  are  also  many  figures  of  different  planetary 


140 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


genii,  sometimes  with  two,  sometimes  with  four  wings,  beings 
which  were  supposed  to  preside  over  the  different  Heavens. 
Scaliger  believed  them  to  be  representations  of  the  Decani,  the 
three  chief  stars  in  each  sign  of  the  Zodiac.  Close  identifica¬ 
tion  is  often  more  than  difficult,  even  when  the  names  are  added 
in  their  barbarous  forms  and  letterings,  though  it  is  probable 
that  Ildabaoth,  the  good  genius  who,  according  to  Valentinus, 
reigned  in  Saturn,  is  most  often  intended.  Sometimes  the 
genius  has  upon  its  head  something  which  seems  to  represent 
the  sacramental  table,  and  they  bear  sceptres  of  different  kinds 
to  symbolize  their  power  and  dominion  (PI.  XXIX,  24). 

Strongly  in  evidence,  also,  on  Gnostic  gems  are  types  de¬ 
rived  from  Egyptian  theology:  the  jackal-headed  Anubis  (PI. 
XXIX,  28a),  in  the  place  of  Hermes  whose  caduceus  he  often 
carries,  whose  office  here  is  to  conduct  the  accredited  souls 
along  the  planetary  path  through  the  regions  of  the  many 
Heavens,  up  to  their  final  rest  in  the  Pleroma,  the  One  embrac¬ 
ing  All  within  itself.  Gems  bearing  this  figure  may  also  be  of 
earlier  date  and  non-Gnostic  origin  and,  if  done  in  the  time 
of  the  Hadrianic  revival,  may  be  very  well  engraved.  So,  too, 
we  find  other  animal-headed  types,  sprung  from  the  same 
Egyptian  sources,  but  a  most  interesting  expression  of  this  idea 
is  on  a  gem  formerly  belonging  to  Dr.  King  where  Anubis  is 
represented  carrying  a  lamb  and  playing  the  part  of  the  Good 
Shepherd  on  the  orthodox  Christian  gems  ( See,  also,  PI.  XXVI, 
5). 

To  the  subjects  of  Egyptian  origin,  also,  belongs  the  rep¬ 
resentation  of  the  child,  Horus,  finger  at  lips  and  scourge  in 
hand,  himself  a  Sun-god,  seated  upon  a  lotos  flower  (PI.  XXIX, 
20b,  26)  or  in  a  boat,  symbol  of  the  Moon,  and,  occasionally, 
with  the  phallic  emblem.  Pictures  of  the  cynocephalus  baboon 
of  Thoth,  generally  with  exaggerated  phallic  attribute,  fall  in 
the  same  class  as  does  the  ibis,  often  bearing  attributes;  also 
the  beetle.  Sometimes  the  cynocephalus  is  adoring  Horus, 
sometimes,  a  pillar  which  may  be  surmounted  by  a  triangle,  a 
symbol  of  the  Moon  to  which  the  baboon  was  consecrated.  Pos¬ 
sibly  the  pillar  has  reference  to  the  ‘‘Pillars  of  Hermes,”  by 


GNOSTIC  GEMS 


141 


means  of  which  the  Gnostic  sage,  Iamblichus,  solved  the  ques¬ 
tions  propounded  to  him  by  Porphyrius.  Belus  mounted  on 
a  lion  was  developed  from  Mithrasism,  as  were,  according  to 
some,  the  winged  genii  above  referred  to.  The  serpent  with  its 
tail  in  its  mouth,  which  often  forms  a  border  on  Gnostic  stones 
(PI.  XXIX,  25,  26),  may  be,  in  some  cases,  of  Ophite  signifi¬ 
cance  or  may  have  reference  to  earlier  phases  of  serpent  wor¬ 
ship,  but  a  passage  in  the  Pistis  Sophia  seems  to  place  it  among 
solar  devices.  It  reads :  “And  the  disk  of  the  Sun  was  a  great 
dragon  whose  tail  was  in  his  mouth,  who  went  up  into  the 
Seven  Powers  on  the  left  hand,  being  drawn  by  four  Powers 
having  the  similitude  of  white  horses.  But  the  going  of  the 
Moon  wTas  in  the  shape  of  a  boat,”  etc.,  etc.  The  mummy  en¬ 
coded  by  the  serpent  probably  has  reference  to  the  protecting 
power  of  the  Agathodaimon  over  the  dead. 

Of  female  figures,  often  winged,  there  are  representations 
of  Athor  and  Sate,  for  the  Roman  Venus  and  Juno.  The  naked 
woman  of  the  Aphrodite  Anadyomene  type  that  is  found  on 
Gnostic  monuments  can  be  explained  as  the  Truth  shown  to 
Marcus,  a  disciple  of  Valentinus,  and  described  by  him  in  his 
Revelation. 

With  the  above  summary  of  basic  ideas  as  a  foundation,  the 
student  may  expect  to  find  many  variants  and  combinations 
with  Egyptian  and  Mithraic  ideas  and  Roman  deities,  more 
especially  Hermes  and  the  Jupiter  Serapis,  imported  and 
adapted  from  Egypt,  also  the  Egyptian  asp  (PI.  XXIX,  15) .  A 
yellow  jasper  in  my  possession,  showing  on  the  one  side  a 
Hekate  (PI.  XXIX,  16)  and  on  the  other  a  man  worshipping 
a  serpent  rising  above  an  altar,  is  an  example  of  the  mixed 
notions  of  the  times.  Curiously  enough,  however,  there  is  a 
queer  trend  of  consistency  in  the  representation  of  even  these 
wildly  inconsistent  ideas,  and,  in  studying  the  gems,  we  absorb 
a  sense  of  the  unfitness  of  certain  types  that  serves  to  relegate 
them  to  later  periods,  like  the  Osiris  stones  I  have  already  re¬ 
ferred  to  and  which  cannot  be  called  forgeries  in  the  present 
acceptance  of  the  term.  They  are  rather  attempts  of  a  later 
superstitious  age  to  imitate  and  reproduce  talismans  and  am- 


142 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


ulets  which,  to  its  thought,  embodied  power  and  protective  in¬ 
fluence.  Such  gems  are  foreign  in  spirit  to  those  of  the  early 
Gnostics  in  a  way  that  no  reasonably  clever  forgery  would  be. 

Had  more  of  the  once  numerous  works  of  the  teachers  of 
the  Gnosis  escaped  the  all  too  thorough  search  of  intolerant  or¬ 
thodoxy,  light  might  be  thrown  on  much  that  is  now  obscure, 
and  the  words  “probably”  and  “possibly”  might  have  occurred 
less  often  in  this  chapter.  Still,  paradoxically  enough,  the  gen¬ 
eral  veil  of  obscurity  itself  wroiild  doubtless  grow  more  dense 
with  each  added  elucidation.  It  must  always  be  remembered 
that  the  philosophic  Gnostics  of  Alexandria  had,  least  of  all, 
the  desire  to  make  their  knowledge  clear  to  the  unlearned  and 
that  its  merit  consisted,  to  a  large  degree,  in  its  exclusive  pos¬ 
session  by  the  elect. 

Inscriptions. — Nearly  all  Gnostic  gems  are  inscribed,  and 
many  bear  only  inscriptions.  Let  not,  however,  the  student 
imagine  that  he  will  find  in  these  an  aid  to  the  puzzles  that  be¬ 
set  him.  The  names  and  titles  of  the  Abraxas  god  that  occur, 
together  with  his  figure  or  alone,  we  know;  so  those  of  the 
Chnumis-Agathodaimon.  Then,  too,  the  legends,  C£M6C  6IAAM 
(The  eternal  Sun)  and  ABA  AN  A0  AN  AA  BA  (Thou  art  our  father), 
are  frequent  inscriptions,  the  latter  referring  to  Abraxas.  Also 
the  seven  vowels  are  often  found,  symbolizing  the  seven  Heavens 
whose  mystic  harmony  kept  the  Universe  together  and  which, 
according  to  the  Pistis  Sophia,  if  rightly  uttered  together  with 
their  forty-nine  powers,  were  of  force  to  compel  the  great  First 
Father  himself  to  tremble  and  to  deliver  souls  out  of  the  deep¬ 
est  dungeons  of  the  Dragon  of  Outer  Darkness.  The  Delphic 
£(  which  stood  for  five,  was  another  holy  numeral,  upon  the 
mysteries  of  which  Plutarch  has  left  us  a  curious  dissertation. 

In  addition  to  these,  there  are  found  on  the  Gnostic  gems 
a  great  number  of  names  of  Jewish  angels  taken  from  the  Kab- 
bala  and  of  divinities  drawn  from  the  Magian  theology,  each 
of  whom  was  supposed  to  hold  sway  over  some  particular  planet 
or  constellation  or  Heaven.  According  to  the  Schema  of  the 
Ophites,  Adonai  was  the  genius  presiding  over  the  Sun,  Iao 
over  the  Moon,  Eloi,  Jupiter;  Sabao,  Mars;  Orai,  Venus; 


GNOSTIC  INSCRIPTIONS 


143 


Astaphai,  Mercury,  and  Ildabaoth,  Saturn.  These  were  for 
the  most  part  mischievous  and,  therefore,  especially  to  be  con¬ 
trolled.  For  the  genii  of  constellations  they  took  the  names 
of  Jewish  angels,  viz.,  Michael  presided  in  the  Lion,  Gabriel 
in  the  Eagle,  Suriel  in  the  Bull,  Raphael  in  the  Serpent,  Than- 
tabaoth  or  Sabaoth  in  the  Bear,  and  Erataoth  in  the  Dog. 
Many  other  names  of  presiding  genii  also  occur,  varying  in  the 
different  sects,  and  the  object  of  this  may  be  understood  when 
we  appreciate  the  importance  attached  by  the  Gnostics  to  pro¬ 
nouncing  them.  To  call  a  power  properly  by  its  proper  name 
was  a  means  of  compelling  it  to  the  service  of  the  learned,  and 
therein  did  the  Gnosis  seek  to  invest  its  followers  with  author¬ 
ity  over  the  world  of  spirits.  The  Ophites  also  taught,  accord¬ 
ing  to  Hippolytus,  that  the  Universe  could  not  hold  together 
unless  the  names  of  the  great  ones  were  uttered.  Such  were 
KAYAKAY  (Kauakau)  or  KAYAAKAY  (Kaulakau),  the  name  of 
“Adamas  who  is  above,”  IAYAAIAY  (Saulasau),  that  of  “Him 
who  is  below,”  and  ZEHIAP  (Zeesar),  “The  third  of  the  Jordan 
that  floweth  upward.”  “Above,”  he  goes  on  to  say,  “are  Mar- 
iamne,  the  sought-after,  and  Jothor,  the  great  and  wise,  and 
Sephora,  she  that  seeth,  and  Moses.” 

Another  sect,  the  Peratai  or  Fatalists,  held  that  XQZZAP 
(Chozzar)  was  the  name  of  Neptune,  KAP<t>AKOZHMOXEP 
(Karphakosemocher),  of  the  Steward  of  the  East;  EKKABAKAPA 
(Ekkabakara),  of  the  West;  API  BA  (Ariba),  of  ruler  of  the 
winds;  IQKAAM  (Soklam),  of  Osiris,  the  ruler  of  the  twelve 
hours  of  the  night;  ENYQ  (Enuo),  of  Isis,  ruler  of  those  of 
the  day;  BHNA  (Bena),  of  Ceres,  the  Left-hand  power  of  God, 
and  MHN  (Men),  of  the  Right-hand  power  that  presides  over 
the  fruits  of  the  Earth.  According  to  the  same  doctrine, 
Chozzar  “Who  converts  into  a  sphere  the  dodecagonal  pyramid, 
etc.”  had  five  ministers,  the,  four  whose  names  we  know  being 
called  AOY,  AOAI,  OYQ  and  OYQAB — mere  strings  of  vowels 
which,  however,  serve  to  suggest  possible  interpretations  of 
many  kindred  inscriptions  on  the  gems. 

Again,  according  to  the  Pistis  Sophia,  the  three  all-power¬ 
ful  ones  were  14’ANTAXAINXEOYX  (I  decline  giving  the  English 


144 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


letters),  from  whom  emanated  the  Power  which  dwelt  in  Mars, 
B  A I N  X UIUJX,  from  whom  came  that  of  Mercury,  and  n  I  IT  1 1 1 04 1 A 
(Pistis  Sophia),  that  of  Venus;  while  above  this  triad  was 
one  still  higher,  the  unseen  Gods:  ATPAMMAXAMAPEr  (Agram- 
maxamareg),  BAPBHAUJ  (Barbelo),  the  Heavenly  Mother  of 
Jesus,  and  BAEAAH  (Bdelle).  Also  it  taught  that  the  incor¬ 
ruptible  names  of  the  planets  were  QPIMOYO  (Orimouth),  Sa¬ 
turn;  M0YNIX0YPA4UIP  (Mounichouraphor),  Mars;  TAPI1ETA- 
N0Y4  (Tarpetanouph),  Mercury;  XUJII  (Chosi),  Venus;  and 
XUJNBAA  (Chonbal),  Jupiter. 

I  forbear  going  further  into  the  “Names,”  lest  I  drive  my 
readers  altogether  mad,  but  a  few  of  the  formulae  seem  neces¬ 
sary,  if  only  to  show  their  general  character.  Greek,  Hebrew, 
Chaldee,  Coptic,  and  Syriac  words,  often  much  corrupted,  are 
involved  in  these,  in  what  Jerome  describes  as  “tormenta  ver- 
borum,”  turned  backward  and  formed,  with  letters  repeated  or 
out  of  place,  word  mixed  with  word  and  the  whole  still  further 
complicated  by  scattering  the  seven  vowels  here  and  there,  for 
it  must  always  be  remembered  that  much  of  the  value  of  these 
charms  depended  upon  their  being  undecipherable  by  other 
than  the  wearer.  Undisguised  examples  are  AN  OX  XOA  XNOY- 
BIC  (I  am  all  the  Good  Spirit),  AIN  OAPPAI  (The  eye  shall  be¬ 
hold),  AAONAI  AANTAAA  (Lord,  Thou  art  the  Lamb),  XU1CA 
MIAAUJ0  (He  hath  seen  the  Pleroma),  and  AMAAXO  AMA3AZ 
LZAI  (rendered  by  Stiechel,  Salama  zebaam  jatzael — Peace  unto 
the  army  of  these). 

A  curious  specimen  of  writing  parts  of  the  same  word  in 
different  lines  is  found  on  the  for  the  most  part  Hebrew  legend 

IABATA0P 
©ON  ATHCAAI 
APBA0I 
AAM 
AUJ 

which  must  be  transposed  and  doctored  to  read  IABATA0P  0ON- 
ATHC  AAIAAM  APBA0  I  AUJ  (Jehovah,  the  Pure  ZEther,  the  Fire 
forever,  the  Four,  Iao),  “the  four”  signifying  the  Tetrad 
of  the  Theogony  of  Marcus.  ANAKAA  AKAAA0UJIUJI  (Pur- 


GNOSTIC  INSCRIPTIONS 


145 


sue  them  unto  destruction,  O  Lord)  is  found  on  the  reverse  of 
a  gem  engraved  with  the  figure  of  a  sphinx,  emblem  of  power 
and  destruction.  BAPIAZAZTA  IAUJ  (Jehovah,  the  Creator,  the 
Destroyer)  is  an  example  of  the  Chaldee,  and  the  Coptic  words, 
IA0AI  (Providence  of  God),  MA0AHE  (Honor  of  God), 
PEOYHAE  (Will  of  God),  XUJMI  (Power  of  God)  and  ZBUJ 
(Wisdom),  designate  Phronesis,  Logos,  Nous,  Dynamis,  and 
Sophia,  the  five  emanations  from  the  Godhead.  KAYAAKAY  is 
the  Basileidan  name  for  the  Saviour,  MOY0  (The  Mother),  a 
title  given  to  Isis,  and  NOOT,  the  corrupted  Coptic  NOYT,  for 
God.  OPUUPIOY0  (Light  of  Light)  is  found  on  gems,  together 
with  the  udder-shaped  vase  of  the  Isiac  ceremonial.  A  few  of 
the  many  other  legends  are  MEI  XANAAUJ  (The  Messiah  be  pro¬ 
pitious  unto  me),  MAPUJHNI  (Enlighten  mine  eyes),  MAI  MYM 
YXAYM  UJI  (Being,  Fount,  Salvation,  Food,  Iao),  TAAA  APAIUJ 
UJAPAOPO  NTOKO  NBAI  (Protector,  Creator,  rule,  speak,  O 
Lord),  XAIA  (Life),  and  AEIOZ  (Reverence). 

Three  characters  are  frequently  found  together:  +,  uj  , 
and  Z.  They  stand  for  the  lucky  and  sacred  numerals,  viz : 
3,  5,  and  7 ;  Triad,  Pentad,  and  Heptad ;  and,  for  the  same 
reasons,  inscriptions  in  three,  five  or  seven  lines  are  especially 
favored  on  gems.  Naturally  a  considerable  number  of  inscrip¬ 
tions  are  in  the  old  Jewish  characters,  not  the  modern  Jewish, 
the  resource  and  the  pitfall  of  the  forgers ;  but  the  great  major¬ 
ity,  whatever  the  language,  are  in  Greek  letters,  usually  cut 
square  and  without  curves,  another  evidence  of  the  growing 
barbarism  and  incapacity  of  the  times. 

As  if  the  above  described  entanglements  were  not  enough, 
the  holy  names  were  held  to  be  doubly  efficacious  if  writ  in 
cyphers,  a  point  on  which  the  Pistis  Sophia  gives  much  doubt¬ 
lessly  very  valuable  information.  “This,”  it  reads,  “is  the  Name 
of  the  Immortal  One:  A  A  A  UJ UU  UJ,  and  this  is  the  Name  of  the 
Voice  through  whose  means  the  perfect  man  is  moved :  1 1 1 , 
These,  likewise,  are  the  interpretations  of  the  names  of  the 
Mysteries.  The  first  is  AAA,  the  interpretation  thereof,  <t>  4>  <t> . 
The  second  which  is  M  M  M  ,  or  which  is  UJ  U)  UJ ,  the  interpretation 
whereof  is  A  A  A  The  third  is  ^  'k  ,  the  interpretation  where- 


146 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


of  is  0  0  0.  The  fourth  is  4>  <i>  <t» ,  the  interpretation  whereof  is 
N  N  N .  The  fifth  is  AAA,  the  interpretation  whereof  is  AAA, 
the  which  is  over  the  throne  AAA.  This  is  the  interpretation 
of  the  second  A  A  A  A,  which  is  AAAAAAAA,  and  the  same  is 
the  interpretation  of  the  whole  Name.” 

With  this  singularly  lucid  explanation  of  the  matter,  I 
leave  reluctantly  the  subject  of  Gnostic  inscriptions.  It  is  quite 
easy  to  understand  that  no  demon  could  long  beset  the  soul  of 
the  adept  whose  body  was  protected  by  such  a  talisman  and 
who  possessed  the  knowledge  to  use  it  properly  and  address 
the  proper  prayers  to  the  right  Powers  by  their  secret  names. 
For  much  more  of  the  same  kind  there  is  always  Dr.  King’s 
work. 

Geometrical  figures,  the  triangle,  square  and  rhombus,  also 
occur  and  have  been  interpreted  variously  but  never  quite  con¬ 
clusively,  save  that  the  last  named  is  supposed  to  stand  for  the 
Egg  of  the  World,  brought  down  from  the  Orphic  theogony. 
For  notation  the  Phoenician  numerals  were  sometimes  used;  1 
to  9  being  shown  by  vertical  strokes,  10  by  a  horizontal  one 
and  20  by  two  parallel  horizontal  strokes,  sometimes  curving 
together  a  trifle.  Sometimes,  again,  certain  angular  forms  in¬ 
dicate  the  use  of  the  Egyptian  system  which  represented  10  by 
F  and  100  by  the  same  four  times  repeated  in  the  form  of  a 
square,  £],  but  it  is  probable  that  in  most  of  the  cases  where 
any  enumeration  was  desirable  it  was  effected  by  the  use  of  the 
numerical  values  of  letters. 

An  interesting  application  of  Gnostic  ideas  was  the  not 
uncommon  addition  of  an  inscription  to  an  ancient  gem  with 
the  intention  of  creating  or  increasing  its  talismanic  power. 
As  an  example  of  this  practice  I  have  a  burnt  sardonyx  with 
a  rather  well  done  figure  of  Victory  dating  from  early  Imperial 
times,  on  the  back  of  which  has  been  cut  the  great  name,  Ab- 
rasax. 

I  am  conscious  that  I  have  cast  a  very  flickering  illumi¬ 
nation  on  this  subject,  supposing  any  illumination  could  be  cast, 
but  the  enormous  mass  of  material  and  its  heterogeneous  char¬ 
acter  make  it  impossible  in  a  work  like  this  more  than  to  fa- 


THE  STORY  OF  MACARIUS 


147 


miliarize  readers  with  the  general  nature  and  character  of  the 
engraving  on  these  stones.  Should  he  feel  sufficient  interest  to 
delve  deeper,  and  possess  a  mind  sturdy  enough  to  stand  the 
strain,  he  will,  at  least,  knbw  that  he  is  studying  the  strangest, 
weirdest  system  of  religion  and  philosophy  which  the  human 
intellect  has  ever  evolved,  and,  conversely,  he  will  be  able  to 
realize  what  that  much  vaunted  intellect  is  capable  of  when 
once  it  cuts  loose  from  the  moorings  of  sanity. 

I  will  close  this  chapter  with  the  only  allusion  to  an  “art¬ 
ist”  which  I  have  been  able  to  find  later  than  the  times  of 
Evodos.  In  the  Paradise  of  the  Holy  Fathers :  stories  of  holy 
men,  by  Palladius,  there  is  an  amusing  anecdote  told  of  Abba 
Macarius  (or  Isidore),  that  might  give  points  to  some  of  our 
clerical  exhorters  of  the  faithful  to  give  bountifully.  There 
was  a  certain  rich  woman  of  Alexandria  who  appears  to  have 
been  rather  lax  in  the  matter  of  contributions,  and  Macarius 
undertook  to  loosen  her  purse-strings.  The  narrative  reads: 
“From  his  youth  up  he  had  been  a  skillful  workman  in  the  cut¬ 
ting  of  gems,  and  he  went  to  her  and  said :  ‘Certain  very  pre¬ 
cious  smaragdi  and  gems  have  fallen  into  my  hands,  and 
whether  they  have  been  stolen  or  not  I  do  not  know’”  (a  del¬ 
icate  touch),  “  ‘but  the  man  who  hath  them  will  sell  them  for 
five  hundred  dinars.’  ”  Attracted  by  the  opportunity,  the  lady 
pays  him  the  money,  whereupon  the  reverend  gentleman  ful¬ 
fills  his  part  of  the  bargain  by  exhibiting  to  her  a  company  of 
beggars  and  the  like,  as  his  “emeralds”  and  “gems,”  upon  whom 
he  has  expended  the  five  hundred  dinars  in  alms.  It  is  not 
probable  that  Macarius  ranked  any  higher  as  an  artist  than  he 
did  as  an  abstract  moralist,  but  the  incident  shows  that  “skill¬ 
ful  workmen,”  according  to  the  estimate  of  the  times,  were 
known  as  late  as  the  end  of  the  fourth  century,  the  date  of  this 
brilliant  coup. 


CHAPTER  IX 


BYZANTINE,  SASSANIAN  AND  MOSLEM  GEMS 
BYZANTINE  GEMS 

For  the  purposes  of  this  book  we  may  consider  the  Byzan¬ 
tine  branch  of  the  glyptic  art  as  ranging  from  the  division  of 
the  Empire,  roughly  speaking  400  A.  D.,  down  to  the  fall  of 
Constantinople,  in  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century.  There 
is  very  little  to  be  said  for  its  merit.  Though  ancient  gems  were 
preserved,  collected,  and  sold  in  Constantinople,  their  presence 
and  inspiration  had  no  influence  whatever  on  the  work  of  the 
time.  This  was,  for  the  most  part,  religious  or  in  the  line 
of  portraiture,  and  shows  the  stiff,  soulless  formality  of  which 
the  term,  Byzantine  Art,  has  come  to  be  a  synonym.  Far  better 
than  most  of  it  is  a  picture  of  the  Virgin  and  Child  with  the  in¬ 
scription,  H  6IKUJN  THC  ATIAC  MAPIAC  (The  likeness  of  the 
holy  Mary).  It  is  much  too  large  for  a  seal  and  was  evidently 
intended  as  an  ornament,  perhaps  of  some  church  vessel.  In 
fact  the  greater  frequency  of  cameos  shows  that  the  signet  idea 
was  no  longer  the  ruling  motive  in  gem-engraving  (See  PI. 
XXX,  8,  10,  11). 

The  inscriptions,  like  the  one  just  quoted,  are  usually  de¬ 
scriptive,  and  the  spelling  and  lettering  are  decadent. 

SASSANIAN  GEMS 

It  is  when  we  go  a  step  farther  toward  the  East  that  we 
find  some  attempt  to  preserve  and  even  to  revive  the  traditions 
of  gem-engraving.  Under  the  native  Persian  Sassanian  dynasty 
which  overthrew  the  more  barbaric  Parthian  supremacy  in 
Central  Asia,  the  art  flourished  from  the  third  to  the  seventh 
148 


MATERIALS,  TECHNIQUE  AND  SUBJECTS  149 


century  A.  D.,  when  the  kingdom  was  conquered  by  the  Mos¬ 
lems.  It  did  not  attain  a  high  degree  of  merit  but  it  was  often 
respectable  in  a  decadent  way,  and  its  popularity  shows  that 
in  that  part  of  the  World  the  use  of  the  gem  for  a  signet  still 
obtained. 

Materials. — The  stones  favored  under  the  Lower  Empire 
were  popular  here:  green  jasper,  heliotrope,  lapis  lazuli,  and 
hematite,  also  carnelian,  sardonyx,  and  chalcedony,  often  of 
the  bluish  tint  known  as  sapphirine,  and,  along  with  these,  a 
considerable  number  of  fine  garnets,  hyacinthine  and  almand- 
ine,  usually  cut  convex,  as  throughout  all  the  good  periods  of 
the  art  in  Europe.  The  amethyst  is  very  rare,  but  perhaps  the 
finest  example  of  Sassanian  work  is  on  that  stone :  the  famous 
Devonshire  portrait,  which  has  been  identified  as  several  Sas¬ 
sanian  kings. 

Technique. — The  character  of  the  work  on  these  stones 
may  be  described,  primarily,  as  sketchy,  done,  as  a  rule,  with 
broad,  hastily  cut  wheel-strokes  and  occasional  drill  borings. 
It  is  lacking  in  strength,  exactness  or  distinction,  but  it  has  a 
certain  decorative  quality,  especially  in  its  expression  of  the 
floating  effect  in  the  delineation  of  garments.  Little  interior 
polish  is  usually  found.  The  shape  of  many  of  the  stones  was 
a  modification  of  the  older  conical  form  into  the  segment  of  a 
circle,  usually  more  than  half,  with  the  picture  on  the  flat  sur¬ 
face.  Often  this  was  compressed  into  a  sort  of  thick  ring  shape 
with  one  side  flattened  and  a  much  larger  boring.  Equally 
numerous  were  ring-stones,  flat  or  convex. 

Subjects. — The  subjects  chosen  for  the  pictures  on  these 
gems  are,  for  the  most  part,  local  in  their  character  and  types, 
although  there  are  evidently  occasional  inspirations  from  late 
Roman  art,  such  as  rare  figures  of  Victory.  Generally  speak¬ 
ing,  the  culture  of  the  kingdom  strove  to  reach  back  to  the  old 
Persian  traditions.  Deities  are  never  figured,  for  the  Zoro- 
astran  had  an  antipathy  to  anything  resembling  an  idol,  but 
there  are  sacerdotal  types,  such  as  fire  altars  or  priests  sacrific¬ 
ing  at  or  praying  before  them.  The  monster  types  of  early 
Oriental  art  occur  repeatedly ;  human-headed  bulls  and  horses 


150 


SASSANIAN  GEMS 


with  wings,  winged  lions,  a  lion  with  scorpion’s  claws  and  a 
serpent  tail,  pegasi,  griffins— all  the  fabulous  creatures  of  the 
archaic  times.  The  frequent  introduction  of  the  tree  of  life 
is,  also,  an  evidence  of  the  tendencies,  and  flowers  are  occasion¬ 
ally  shown.  With  these  are  found  the  numerous  astrological 
symbols  to  be  expected  under  Magian  supremacy,  signs  of  the 
Zodiac,  stars,  suns,  and  crescents.  What  King  describes  as  the 
national  standard,  a  crescent,  set  above  a  bar  or  ball,  between 
two  horns  and  supported  on  a  tripod  (?),  but  which  seems, 
often,  more  like  some  conventional  fire  altar  motive,  is  so  com¬ 
mon  that  he  supposes  it  to  have  been  the  usual  seal  of  certain 
military  officers  (PL  XXX,  5).  Paul  Horn  and  George  Stein- 
dorff,  in  their  work  on  Sassanian  Gem  Signets,  call  it  a  mono¬ 
gram,  but  its  frequency  in  approximately  the  same  form  and 
often  with  an  inscription,  seems  to  me  to  argue  against  this 
interpretation. 

Representations  of  animals  are  perhaps  the  most  abundant 
of  all  (PI.  XXX,  1),  but  they  are  seldom  drawn  naturally  or 
executed  with  any  spirit:  bulls,  always  of  the  Hindoo  hump¬ 
backed  type,  horses,  wild  sheep  and  goats,  boars,  lions,  tigers, 
wolves,  foxes,  bears,  antelopes,  stags,  often  couchant  or  lying 
down  with  the  head  turned  around,  eagles  and  other  creatures. 
The  heads  or  busts  of  beasts  also  occur  (PL  XXX,  4)  and  a  few 
royal  hunting  scenes  (PL  XXX,  2).  Women  are  often  pic¬ 
tured,  sometimes  with  children  (Pl.  XXX,  3),  but,  most  inter¬ 
esting  of  all  the  subjects  and  more  frequent  than  all,  save  the 
animal  types,  are  the  portraits  (PL  XXX,  6,  7),  so  many  of 
them  evidently  of  kings  and  satraps  that  the  complimentary 
motive  in  the  matter  of  signet  devices  is  strongly  in  evidence. 
These  portrait  busts  rarely  suggest  a  very  close  likeness  but 
there  is  generally  an  attempt  to  portray  the  elaborate  dressing 
of  the  hair,  the  fillet  and,  often,  some  sort  of  tiara,  though 
seldom  the  characteristic  royal  cidaris  found  on  coins  and 
somewhat  varied  by  each  monarch  so  that  the  shortcomings  in 
portraiture  might  be  compensated  for.  Still,  much  may  be 
learned  from  the  hair  arrangement,  and  the  inscription  of  the 
name  and  titles  of  the  prince  often  gives  a  needed  clue.  Pecu- 


INSCRIPTIONS 


151 


liar  is  the  care  with  which  the  large  pearl  pendant  from  the 
ear  is  usually  rendered. 

Inscriptions. — Fortunately  these  are  very  common  on  Sas- 
sanian  gems.  Rarely  the  Greek  letters  are  used,  on  a  few 
Sassanian  Christian  stones  to  be  referred  to  later.  Almost 
universally  the  writing  is  in  some  form  of  the  more  or  less 
flowing  Pehlevi  characters  that,  with  the  regaining  of  Persian 
freedom,  succeeded  the  Greek  alphabet  affected  by  the  Parthian 
conquerors.  The  scarcity  of  the  proven  glyptic  remains  of 
the  latter  can  probably  be  accounted  for  on  the  presumption 
that  their  gems  cannot  be  distinguished  from  poor  examples  of 
late  Greek  work.  As  on  their  coinage,  they,  doubtless,  used 
the  conventional  Greek  types. 

To  return  to  the  Pehlevi  inscriptions,  the  language  wTas 
first  deciphered  by  De  Sacy,  but  many  of  the  readings  are  un¬ 
certain  and  few  if  any  of  our  readers  will  probably  have  either 
the  knowledge  or  the  patience  to  work  it  out,  even  sufficiently 
to  understand  the  rather  limited  scope  of  the  gem  legends :  the 
names  of  the  owners  or  of  the  princes  whose  likenesses  are 
found,  together  with  such  titles  as  “The  Just,”  “The  Merciful,” 
“The  most  humble  servant  of  the  gods,”  “King  of  kings,” 
“Savior  of  Mortals,”  etc.  They  sometimes  begin  with  four 
letters  variously  read  “apad”  or  “afzud”  (“The  Most  High”  or 
“Long  live.”)  One  reads,  “Artashetran  Rami  Minocheter” 
(“Rami,  son  of  Artaxerxes  of  the  Divine  Race.”). 

The  most  usual  form  of  the  alphabet  found  in  Pehlevi 
inscriptions  contains  three  long  vowels,  A,  I  and  U,  and  eleven 
consonants,  B,  D,  H,  K,  L  (or  R),  M,  N,  P  (or  PH),  S  (or  SH), 
T  and  Z.  The  short  vowels,  as  is  usual  in  Oriental  writings, 
are  to  be  supplied  by  the  readers.  Letters  are  generally  united, 
two,  three  or  even  more,  in  a  sort  of  script  which  becomes  more 
definitely  script-like  and  more  difficult  to  read  as  the  period 
advances.  Those  who  desire  to  understand  the  inscriptions  on 
their  gems  should  take  them  to  the  best  orientalist  within 
reach  and  curb  their  very  probable  disappointment  if  he  fails 
them. 

Sassanian  Christian  Gems. — When  the  orthodox  party 


152 


SASSANIAN  GEMS 


gained  control  in  the  Eastern  Empire  they  promptly  put  in 
practice  the  lessons  in  persecution  taught  them  by  a  few  of 
the  earlier  Pagan  rulers.  The  heretical  sects  were  numerous 
and  among  them  were  the  Nestorians,  many  of  whom  sought 
and  received  asylum  in  Persia. 

Thus  the  cross  is  found  engraved  on  Sassanian  stones, 
sometimes  rebus-wise  and  with  other  symbols,  and  Chabouillet 
notes  a  number  of  religious  picture  subjects,  such  as  the  sacrifice 
of  Abraham,  the  Virgin  seated  with  the  infant  Jesus  in  her  lap, 
the  meeting  of  the  Virgin  and  St.  Elisabeth — a  somewhat 
doubtful  interpretation,  I  think,  of  a  well  known  gem,  and,  also, 
most  notable  of  all,  a  beardless  bust-portrait  of  Christ  in 
profile  with  a  fish  beneath  it  and  bearing  the  Greek  inscription, 
XPICTOY.  The  stone  is  a  truncated  cone  of  white  chalcedony. 
Inscriptions  are  sometimes  in  Greek,  sometimes  in  Pehlevi. 

Forgeries. — Before  leaving  the  subject  of  Sassanian  gems, 
I  quote  from  an  article  on  Forgeries  of  Assyrian  and  Baby¬ 
lonian  Antiquities  in  Vol.  Ill  (1887)  of  The  American  Journal 
of  Archaeology,  by  M.  Joachim  Menant.  He  writes,  “At  Teheran 
the  Sassanian  engraved  stones  have  long  been  systematically 
imitated.  The  types  of  the  Sapors  and  Ardeshirs  have  been 
exploited  with  a  skill  so  remarkable  as  to  deceive  the  most 
practiced  eye.  These  works  would  not  come  within  the  limits 
of  this  inquiry  were  it  not  that  it  has  often  been  attempted  to 
pass  them  off  for  portraits  of  Achsemenid  princes,  and  they 
are  provided  with  cuneiform  inscriptions.”  Of  two  schematic 
wood-cuts  of  examples,  he  says:  “The  work,  quite  modern  in 
appearance,  seems  to  have  been  executed  hastily,  though  the 
engraver  was  fond  of  details  .  .  .  Although  certain  technical 
details  show  the  hand  of  the  modern  workman,  the  intaglios 
might  have  circulated  as  portraits  of  Ardeshirs  and  Sapors 
had  it  not  been  that  the  forger  engraved  around  each  figure  an 
inscription  in  cuneiform  characters  in  which  he  stands  con¬ 
victed.” 

On  its  face  this  seems  rather  disturbing,  though  if  the  gems 
looked  anything  like  the  drawings  M.  Menant  gives  I  cannot 
imagine  their  deceiving  anyone  but  an  ignoramus.  Also  I  can- 


FORGERIES 


153 


not  but  feel  that  M.  Menant  might  have  been  misled  as  to  the 
prevalence  of  the  practice.  The  demand  for  gems  of  the  Sassa- 
nian  type  could  not  have  been  very  active  among  the  rich  collect¬ 
ors  who  made  forging  worth  while,  save,  perhaps,  in  the  cases  of 
a  few  specialists.  The  dilettante  wanted,  primarily,  art  and 
beauty  in  the  objects  of  his  desire,  and  few  would  be  apt  to 
venture  deeply  into  the  Sassanian  field  for  other  than  purposes 
of  study  and  research.  To  deceive  such  specialists  is,  of  course, 
the  most  difficult  of  the  forger’s  tasks.  We  must  admit  that  the 
cutters  of  Moslem  signets  have  always  had  enough  skill  to  copy 
such  Sassanian  work  as  might  come  into  their-  hands  and  that 
the  imitative  trait  of  the  Oriental  makes  him  an  accurate  and 
painstaking  copyist,  free,  theoretically  at  least,  from  the  spirit 
of  independence  that  usually  tempts  the  European  forger  to 
some  trifling  touch  of  damning  originality;  yet,  if  this  were 
the  practice  why  should  not  the  inscriptions  be  reproduced 
as  faithfully  and  as  irrefutably?  I  hold  there  is  no  safety 
in  fraud  save  in  an  absolute  copy  properly  cut  on  a  properly 
chosen  and  properly  treated  stone  and,  aside  from  the  inherent 
improbability  of  M.  Menant’s  peril  being  as  great  as  he  pictures 
it,  he  seems  to  me  to  be  on  the  horns  of  a  dilemma.  His  forgers 
did  show  all  the  stupidity  of  their  kind,  and  were  not  content 
to  copy.  That  there  may  be  some  clever  forgeries  in  this  line 
I  would  not  deny  and,  in  view  of  the  less  knowledge  we  possess 
of  both  the  authentic  types  and  the  ways  and  work  of  their 
imitators,  these  forgeries  may  be  more  dangerous  than  equally 
clever  efforts  at  imitating  Occidental  gems.  This,  however, 
spells  ignorance  on  the  part  of  would-be  experts,  and  what  is 
our  own  fault  can  usually  be  remedied. 

LATER  MOHAMMEDAN  GEMS 

Perhaps  here,  too,  is  the  best  place  to  refer  to  the  large 
class  of  inscription  signets  which  have  been  made  and  used  in 
Western  Asia  since  the  Moslem  supremacy.  Very  rarely  are 
figures  found  on  these,  since  such  portrayals  were  contrary 
to  the  spirit  of  Islam  which  has  carried  its  morbid  dread  of 


154 


MOSLEM  GEMS 


idolatry  into  the  field  of  its  art.  Ancient  gems  were,  doubtless, 
kept  as  talismans  by  the  less  strict  religionists  who  sometimes 
even  sought  to  increase  their  beneficial  or  nullify  their  malign 
power  by  adding  a  Koran  text  on  the  back. 

Inscriptions,  then,  are,  with  the  exception  of  occasional 
embellishment  with  flower  and  star  designs,  the  whole  of 
Moslem  glyptic  art,  and  the  name  of  the  owner  with  his  titles, 
texts  from  the  Koran,  prayers,  and  pious  axioms  or  ejaculations 
form  the  subject  matter  (PI.  XXXII,  1).  The  earliest  are  in 
the  square,  vertical  Cufic  letters,  descendants,  through  Syria, 
of  the  early  Pehlevi,  but,  after  the  thirteenth  century,  this  gave 
place  to  the  flowing  Persian  text,  often  complicated  and 
obscured  by  elaborate  flourishes.  It  is  with  this  latter  that 
we  find,  also,  the  star  and  flower  ornamentation. 

In  the  matter  of  mechanical  execution  these  gems  are 
admirably  engraved.  No  elegance  of  the  curves  seems  to  trouble 
the  craftsmen,  and  the  effect,  from  a  decorative  standpoint,  is 
often  very  pleasing.  Save  for  a  few  hemispherical  shapes  that 
continued  for  a  short  time  after  the  Sassanian  collapse,  the 
Moslem  gems  are  ring-stones,  for  the  most  part  coarse  load¬ 
stone,  more  or  less  fine  carnelians,  jaspers  and  sards,  together 
with  a  few  rubies.  These  are  cut  flat  and  are  round,  square, 
usually  with  somewhat  rounded  corners,  or  octagonal.  At 
the  present  day  most  Turks  have  their  signets  cut  in  metal, 
but  some  who  can  afford  it  still  wear  the  carnelian  ring-stone, 
and  the  art  of  engraving  it  has  never  died  out. 

RABBINICAL  GEMS 

From  the  same  regions,  also,  comes  a  small  class  of  gems 
bearing  inscriptions,  mostly  names,  in  Rabbinical  lettering  and, 
generally,  without  other  engraving.  They  were  undoubtedly 
the  seals  of  Hebrews,  and  some  of  them  seem  to  be  of  very 
considerable  though  rather  indefinite  antiquity. 


CHAPTER  X 


GEMS  IN  MEDIAEVAL  EUROPE.  THEIR  USE  AND 
MANUFACTURE 

Having  concluded  our  summary  of  the  trend  of  glyptic 
art  in  the  East,  we  may  now  turn  to  Mediaeval  Europe. 

It  has  been  loosely  stated  that,  when  the  repeated  waves 
of  Northern  invasion  swept  over  and,  at  last,  submerged  the 
Western  Empire,  it  was  the  practice  of  the  barbarians,  “who 
valued  only  the  precious  metals,”  to  break  engraved  gems  from 
their  settings  and  throw  them  away,  so  as  to  consign  the  latter 
to  the  melting  pot.  This  idea  is  inaccurate  and  has  probably 
had  its  birth  in  a  desire  to  explain  the  fact  that  few  gems 
are  found  in  the  original  rings.  Most  of  the  barbarians  were 
not  quite  barbarous  enough  for  that.  Service  in  the  legions 
and  contact  with  the  borders  and  outskirts  of  Roman  culture 
had  taught  them  Roman  valuations,  and  they  were  not  likely 
to  regard  as  worthless  what  their  rich  and  envied,  if  despised, 
neighbors  held  precious.  Probably  they  found  little  practical 
use,  at  first,  for  gems  as  signets,  but  even  in  such  races  as  the 
Huns  there  must  have  existed  that  belief  in  talismans  and 
amulets  common  to  all  rude  peoples,  and  beautiful  stones  bear¬ 
ing  strange  figures  and  signs  were  sure  to  be  looked  upon  as 
possessing  this  character.  The  knowledge  that  must  have  dwelt 
in  even  the  densest  ignorance  that  the  cultured  owners  had  held 
them  things  of  price  would  be  construed  by  the  looting  bar¬ 
barian  in  the  light  of  his  own  predilections.  Moreover  it  is  easy 
to  explain  in  a  much  more  plausible  way  the  great  proportion  of 
unset  gems  that  are  found.  The  settings,  at  the  best,  were 
much  more  perishable  than  the  gems,  and  numberless  vicis- 

155 


156 


GEMS  IN  MEDIAEVAL  EUROPE 


situdes  combined  to  destroy  them.  As  anyone  can  realize  who 
wears  a  signet  and  uses  it  constantly,  merely  drawing  the  gold 
ring  on  and  off  will  necessitate  its  renewal  several  times  in 
a  life,  especially  when  the  metal  is  of  a  high  purity,  while 
many  of  the  substances,  such  as  iron,  of  which  many  rings  were 
made,  often  with  but  a  thin  plating  of  gold,  disintegrated  from 
mere  time  or  contact  with  the  earth  salts.  This  for  the  vast 
number  that  were  lost  or  buried.  Again,  many  were  taken  from 
the  settings  to  be  reset  more  in  accordance  with  the  taste  of 
their  new  owners,  and,  above  all,  it  is  certain  that  in  ancient 
times  the  stone  was  much  less  firmly  fixed  in  the  bezel  than 
to-day,  usually  with  the  aid  of  some  sort  of  cement  which 
would  lose  its  hold  with  time.  Traces  of  this  and  sometimes 
of  the  corroded  metal  itself  are  found  on  the  backs  of  gems  and 
the  desire  to  remove  these  explains  the  fact  that  the  backs  of 
stones  are  often  found  repolished,  even  when  the  modern  finder 
or  owner  has  had  sense  enough  to  leave  the  face  intact. 

This  view  of  the  matter,  however,  is  not  based  on  theory 
alone.  From  the  earliest  Mediseval  times  positive  evidence  is 
at  hand.  Among  the  articles  found  in  the  Longobardic  necro¬ 
polis  of  the  seventh  century  A.  D.,  at  Castel  Trosino,  and  pre¬ 
served  in  the  Museo  delle  Terme  at  Rome,  I  found  three  ancient 
intaglios  set  in  rings  and  four  in  brooches,  all  of  Longobard 
workmanship. 

At  a  later  Mediaeval  period,  one  of  the  commonest  uses  for 
ancient  gems  was  for  the  ornamentation  of  church  plate.  That 
of  the  Troyes  Cathedral  was  adorned  with  nearly  three  hundred, 
most  of  which,  small  carnelian  intaglios,  were  taken  by  the 
Crusaders  at  their  capture  of  Constantinople  and  were  used 
to  decorate  a  small  shrine  which  contained  a  tooth  of  St.  Peter. 
The  shrine  of  the  Three  Kings  at  Cologne,  twelfth  century 
work,  was  adorned  with  two  hundred  and  twenty-six  ancient 
gems.  The  shrine  of  Elizabeth  of  Thuringen  and  Hesse  at 
Marburg,  made  about  1250,  contained  eight  hundred  and 
twenty-four  precious  stones,  many  of  which  we  know  to  have 
been  intaglios.  Evodos’  portrait  of  Julia,  daughter  of  Titus,  was 
preserved  in  the  Tresor  de  S.  Denys,  and  there  are  many  other 


USE  OP  ANCIENT  GEMS 


157 


records  of  such  an  application  at  times  when  all  sorts  of 
precious  things  were  lavished  upon  the  Church. 

Even  more  general,  however,  was  the  use  of  the  ancient 
gems  as  signets  by  whoever  might  need  them,  from  the  king 
down  to  the  smallest  land-owning  nobles  and  ecclesiastics. 

Before  the  tenth  century,  when  the  use  of  seals  cut  in  metal 
became  popular,  the  ancient  stones  must  have  been  even  more 
in  demand.  Charlemagne  used  an  ancient  head  of  Marcus 
Aurelius  and,  later,  one  of  Jupiter  Serapis;  Pepin  le  Bref,  a 
figure  of  the  bearded  Dionysos;  Pepin  due  d’Aquitaine,  a 
portrait  of  Caligula;  Carloman  (764  A.  D.),  a  female  bust 
with  hair  in  knot,  probably  a  Diana;  Louis  I  (816  A.  D.),  a 
portrait  of  Antoninus  Pius  (or  Commodus)  ;  Lothaire  (840 
A.  D.),  a  portrait  of  Caracalla,  and  Eadgar,  king  of  the  Angles 
(860  A.  D.),  an  ancient  portrait  head,  diademed,  probably  of 
some  post-Alexandrian  Greek  prince.  There  are  many  other  ex¬ 
amples  and,  in  some  cases,  it  is  probable  the  seal  was  selected 
because  of  a  fancied  resemblance  to  the  person  who  chose  it. 
In  others,  such  as  both  the  Jupiter  Serapis  and  Marcus  Aure¬ 
lius  heads  worn  by  Charlemagne,  it  is  pretty  certain  that  they 
were  regarded  as  heads  of  Christ,  in  accordance  with  a  theory 
of  Mediaeval  interpretation  to  which  I  will  refer  later. 

Among  ecclesiastical  signets  a  curious  example  is  the 
choice  by  Seffrid,  bishop  of  Chichester  (1159  A.  D.),  of  a  fig¬ 
ure  of  the  Abraxas  god,  for  his  episcopal  ring.  Probably  its 
supposed  efficiency  as  an  amulet  was  too  much  for  the  worthy 
churchman,  but  the  Venus  bust,  seal  of  the  Archbishop  of  Sens 
(twelfth  century),  seems  even  more  inappropriate. 

The  commandery  of  the  Hospitallers  at  Venice  had  for  a 
counterseal  the  goddess  Ceres,  enthroned,  holding  wheat  ears 
and  a  cornucopia,  and  there  is  the  case  of  the  monks  of  Durham 
who  placed  the  head  of  Jupiter  Fulgurator  on  their  common 
seal,  as  being  the  portrait  of  their  patron,  St.  Oswald. 

Even  together  with  the  large  metal  official  seals,  gems  were 
still  eagerly  sought  as  counterseals  and  personal  signets.  W. 
de  G.  Birch,  in  his  work  on  seals,  gives  a  large  number  of 
instances  of  bishops  and  high  church  dignitaries  of  the  twelfth 


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GEMS  IN  MEDIAEVAL  EUROPE 


and  thirteenth  centuries  whose  counterseals  were  ancient  gems. 
Among  these  were  Theobald  of  Canterbury,  who  sealed  with 
the  bearded  head  of  a  god  or  emperor,  and  Stephen  Langton 
of  Canterbury,  with  two  Cupids,  one  of  whom  is  climbing  a 
tree  with  the  aid  of  a  ladder.  It  would  be  interesting  to  know 
just  how  he  interpreted  the  subject.  Mr.  Birch  mentions  in 
all  something  less  than  one  hundred  of  these  stones,  thirteen  of 
which  he  describes  as  Gnostic  or  grylli,  eight  as  early  Christian, 
and,  among  the  rest,  four  Fortunas,  three  Athenas,  two  Vic¬ 
tories,  single  examples  of  Ceres,  Hermes,  Cupid,  Hercules 
and  the  Lion,  Omphale,  a  hippocamp,  a  biga,  and  numerous 
portrait  heads  and  pictures  of  animals.  To  some  he  does  not 
undertake  to  give  attributions,  and  it  is,  of  course,  possible 
that,  the  subject  of  ancient  glyptics  not  being  especially  his 
own,  he  may  not  always  attribute  correctly.  G.  Demay,  in  his 
introduction  to  Inventaire  des  Sceaux  de  VArtois  et  de  la 
Picardie  and  his  Les  Pierres  Gravees  dans  les  Sceaux  du 

A 

Moyen  Age,  mentions  more  than  three  hundred  ancient  gems, 
including  figures  of  Jupiter,  Isis,  Mars,  Apollo,  iEsculapius, 
Minerva,  Venus,  Mercury,  Bacchus,  Hercules,  Diana,  Victory, 
Fortuna,  Medousa,  Pegasus,  Omphale,  Abraxas,  fauns,  cen¬ 
taurs,  genii,  animals,  grylli,  and  portrait  heads.  In  the 
chronicle  of  Jocelyn  of  Brakelonde  it  is  told  how  Abbot  Samson 
of  St.  Edmundsbury  found  his  monks  pledging  with  their  seals 
the  credit  of  the  monastery  for  their  private  debts.  Deciding 
to  stop  the  practice,  he  ordered  all  seals  surrendered  and 
gathered  in  thirty-three.  These  certainly  were  not  the  big 
metal  seals  of  the  time  (1180-1200  A.  D.).  Nothing  save 
ancient  gems  could  have  been  within  the  reach  of  these  good 
"brothers  to  serve  for  such  pious  ends,  and  the  instance  goes  to 
show  the  number  and  obtainability  of  such  stones.  Again,  in 
the  Beroult  fragment  of  Tristan,  Isolde  says :  “Friend  Tristan, 
I  have  a  ring :  a  green  jasper  with  a  seal.” 

To  the  Mediaeval  mind  the  ancient  gems  were  “Pierres 
d’ Israel,”  works  executed  by  the  Jews  when  wandering  in  the 
wilderness,  and  its  interpretation  of  the  subjects  according 
to  the  prevalent  ideas  of  the  times  makes  one  of  the  most 


MEDIAEVAL  GEM-CUTTING 


159 


curious  chapters  in  the  history  of  these  stones.  Most  winged 
figures,  Victory,  Cupid,  etc.,  were  held  to  be  angels,  Jupiter 
with  his  eagle  was  readily  susceptible  of  interpretation  as 
St.  John  the  Evangelist,  Jupiter  Serapis  was  Christ  and  is 
probably  the  origin  of  the  conventional  likeness  adopted  by 
Byzantine  art,  while  Caracalla,  with  his  curly  locks  and 
surly  expression,  was  generally  considered  a  likeness  of  St. 
Peter.  Veiled  female  heads  were  Madonnas  and  Magdalenes; 
Isis  and  Horus,  the  Virgin  and  Child ;  Thalia  with  her  attribute 
mask  was  Herodias  with  the  head  of  John  the  Baptist.  Figures 
with  the  shepherd’s  pedum  were  abbots  bearing  their  crooks, 
combinations  of  three  masks  suggested  the  Trinity,  and,  most 
humorous  of  all,  Leda  and  the  Swan  was  held  to  be  a  represen¬ 
tation  of  the  Holy  Ghost  descending  upon  Mary,  in  the  form  of  a 
dove: — all  were  translated  along  kindred  lines  by  the  eager 
and  ignorant  religionists  of  the  times. 

Passing  from  the  use  of  ancient  gems  to  the  work  of  the 
Mediaeval  gem-cutters  themselves,  it  has  been  the  fashion  to 
maintain  that  the  art  died  out  completely  in  barbarianized 
Europe,  save  for  a  few  rather  large  rock-crystals  engraved 
with  crucifixions  and  other  religious  subjects,  such  as  a  Susan¬ 
na  and  the  Elders,  shown  in  different  scenes.  This  is  of  ninth 
century  workmanship.  It  is  now  in  the  British  Museum  and 
was  anciently  used  as  a  brooch  to  fasten  the  pontifical  robes  of 
the  Abbot  of  Vezor  on  the  Meuse.  Even  the  few  that  are 
known  show  that  the  art  was  not  dead,  and  the  general  use  of 
ancient  gems,  together  with  the  virtues  attributed  to  them, 
indicates  that  there  must  have  been  a  demand  for  such  work. 
Also  there  is  presumptive  evidence  in  the  works  of  Mediaeval 
writers,  as  when  Alexander  of  Tralles  in  the  sixth  century 
and  Marbodus  in  the  eleventh  give  directions  as  to  the  engrav¬ 
ing  of  certain  subjects  on  the  appropriate  stones.  The  last 
named  directs  that  a  vine  entwined  with  ivy  should  be  cut  on 
the  sard,  a  lobster  and  raven  on  the  beryl,  Mars  and  Virgo 
holding  a  branch  on  the  chalcedony,  etc. 

Circumstantial  evidence  contra  is  that  the  character  of 
the  work  of  the  times  is  unmistakable  and  the  gems  themselves 


160 


GEMS  IN  MEDIAEVAL  EUEOPE 


are  not  in  evidence,  against  which  may  be  argned  their  probable 
comparative  rarity,  owing  to  the  cost,  and  the  few  individuals 
who  had  a  preference  for  contemporaneous  work  and  the  money 
to  pay  for  it. 

There  is,  however,  direct  evidence  that  the  position  taken 
by  King  and  many  writers  and  not  refuted  by  Furtwangler  is, 
at  least,  much  too  broadly  stated.  Lecoy  de  la  Marche,  in  his 
work  on  Seals,  cites  a  signet  used  at  one  time  by  Lothaire, 
bearing  a  bust  in  full  face  with  long  hair  hanging  on  each  side, 
the  whole  being  of  the  exact  type  found  on  the  metal  seals  of 
the  Merovingian  kings,  from  whose  period  it  may  date.  An¬ 
other,  also  used  by  the  same  prince,  was  evidently  of  contem¬ 
poraneous  make :  a  portrait  of  himself  done  in  rock-crystal. 

Beyond  this  we  have  seal  impressions  from  Carlovingian 
times,  many  of  which  show  by  their  sharpness  and  clearness 
as  well  as  by  the  indications  of  the  setting  that  they  were 
made  from  gems  rather  than  from  designs  cut  in  metal,  and 
when  we  examine  the  subjects  chosen  and  the  characteristics 
of  the  art  it  becomes  clear  that  the  engraving  on  not  a  few 
of  these  was  of  the  period  of  the  sealings  themselves. 

From  the  tenth  century  on  we  find  many  examples  of  this. 
Conrad,  King  of  Arles  (940),  seals  with  a  portrait  bust,  evident¬ 
ly  of  contemporary  cutting;  Raoul  and  Jean  de  Nesle,  Counts 
of  Soissons  (1115,  1262),  Pierre  de  Longueville  and  Henri 
d’Apremont  (1331),  all  seal  with  gems  bearing  the  engraving 
of  a  horseman  with  a  gonfalon;  King  John  of  France  (1362), 
with  the  letters  I  R  F  (Johannes  Rex  Francie)  surmounted 
by  a  crown ;  Marguerite  de  France,  widow  of  Louis  I,  Count  of 
Flanders  (1367),  with  an  heraldic  lion;  Amedee  VI,  Count 
of  Savoy  (1369), with  an  heraldic  field  of  crosslets ;  Jean,  Count 
of  Vendome,  with  two  winged  and  nimbus-crowned  angels; 
Gilles  de  Hallu,  with  a  cavalier  holding  a  lance,  and  Guillaume 
de  Montclar,  with  a  cavalier  armed  with  a  sword,  the  horse 
being  covered  with  housing.  These  are  given  by  Demay,  in 
his  work  on  engraved  gems  used  as  seals  in  the  Middle  Ages. 
He  describes,  in  all,  367  impressions  from  gem  seals,  of  which 
341  are  from  antique  gems  and  26  attributed  to  gem  work  of 


MEDIAEVAL  GEM-CUTTING 


161 


the  period.  Of  these  latter,  15  are  bust  portraits,  some  of 
which  are,  perhaps,  less  convincing  than  the  examples  cited 
above,  which  could  not  possibly  date  from  earlier  times. 

Gori  says  that,  before  1300  A.  D.,  the  Florentines  used 
two  gem  seals :  one,  cut  in  a  large  plasma,  for  public  documents, 
a  Hercules,  who  figured  as  one  of  the  supporters  of  the  city 
arms;  the  other,  small,  for  letters,  bore  the  Florentine  lily. 
The  former  was  probably  and  the  latter  certainly  of  Mediaeval 
workmanship. 

Many  of  the  gems  mentioned  in  ancient  texts  and  quoted 
by  de  la  Marche,  while  convincing  as  quoted,  must  always 
be  open  to  the  suspicion  of  Mediaeval  interpretations,  though 
the  sapphires  of  Charles  V  (1368)  bearing,  one  a  K  surrounded 
by  fleur  de  lys,  and  the  other,  a  picture  of  the  king  mounted 
and  the  arms  of  France  are,  of  course,  beyond  doubt.  The 
same  is  true  of  such  later  examples  of  Gothic  art  as  the  sapphire 
engraved  with  a  Madonna  head,  claimed  on  superficial  reason¬ 
ing  to  have  been  the  signet  of  Matthew  Paris  (PI.  XXX,  9) ; 
another  Madonna  in  full  face,  on  a  European  carnelian,  found 
in  Suffolk ;  the  signet  of  Jean  sans  Peur,  Duke  of  Burgundy — 
his  arms  engraved  on  a  pale  sapphire;  a  rectangular  spinel, 
bearing  a  youthful  head  in  full  face  with  a  crown  of  three 
fleur  de  lys,  among  the  Marlborough  Gems,  and  many  others 
the  dates  of  which  may  be  set  around  the  fifteenth  century, 
on  the  verge  of  the  revival  of  the  ancient  arts  which  was  to 
produce  the  splendid  work  of  the  Renaissance.  Also,  from 
the  beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century  we  have  the  signet 
found  in  the  tomb  of  Bitton,  Bishop  of  Exeter:  a  sapphire 
engraved  with  a  hand  with  the  thumb  and  two  fore-fingers 
extended,  as  if  in  episcopal  benediction. 

There  is,  as  I  have  said,  no  claim  that  hard  stones  were 
engraved  in  any  considerable  number  during  these  periods. 
The  supply  of  ancient  gems  and  the  vogue  of  large  metal  seals 
bearing  figures  and  legends  checked  this  and  left  the  demand 
for  contemporary  subjects  to  be  inspired  only  by  luxury  or 
whim.  What  is  established  is  that  the  art  itself  never  died  out 
in  the  West,  and  that,  when  the  spirit  of  the  Renaissance  called 


162 


GEMS  IN  MEDIAEVAL  EUROPE 


for  its  revival,  the  forerunners  of  the  accomplished  artists  to 
which  that  influence  gave  birth  were  not  all  Byzantines  as  has 
been  supposed.  (See  PI.  XXX,  10,  11.) 

I  have  already  referred  to  the  term,  “Pierres  d’ Israel”, 
which  voiced  the  Mediaeval  belief  in  the  origin  and  the  magical 
powers  of  ancient  engraved  gems,  but  we  should  not  leave  this 
period  without  a  fuller  notion  of  the  place  they  held  as  medical 
amulets  and  as  talismans.  Though  this  element  was  always 
pretty  generally  recognized,  there  is  no  other  period  of  which  we 
have  much  knowledge  when  the  most  intelligent  thought  of  the 
World  received  the  idea  so  unreservedly.  In  classical  times 
there  were  always  a  few  clear-minded  thinkers  who  doubted, 
as  does  Pliny  while  he  records  the  belief  of  his  age,  or  laughed 
in  his  metaphorical  sleeve,  as  we  feel  Hippokrates  must  have 
done  when  he  stated  that  he  found  the  efficacy  of  amulets  in 
the  cure  of  disease  much  increased  when  they  were  used  together 
with  the  regular  remedies. 

With  the  rising  flood  of  barbarism  and  the  drowning  out 
of  an  already  decaying  classical  culture,  all  vestiges  of  sanity 
seem  to  have  vanished.  Gnosticism  had  helped  pave  the  way, 
and  we  find  the  learned  of  all  professions  formulating  beliefs 
with  a  minute  accuracy  that  does  credit  at  least  to  their 
imagination  and  to  their  diligence  in  research. 

In  the  sixth  century,  the  physician,  Alexander  of  Tralles, 
recommends,  in  his  work  on  therapeutics,  a  ring  engraved  with 
a  picture  of  Hercules  conquering  the  Nemean  Lion,  as  a  pro¬ 
tection  against  stomach-ache  (PI.  XXX,  12).  Certain  of  the 
so-called  lapidaria  were  ascribed  to  Solomon,  Chael,  Ragael  and 
other  wise  Hebrews,  historical  and  apocryphal,  and  a  collection 
was  published  in  1502  by  Camillo  di  Leonardo.  The  work  of 
Thetel  or  Cethel,  an  imaginary  Jewish  philosopher,  included 
in  J.  B.  Pitra’s  Spicilegium  Solesmense,  gives  a  good  idea  of 
the  nature  and  scope  of  the  superstition  and  is  well  worth 
quoting  from. 

“Of  the  greatest  potency,”  says  the  learned  Thetel,  “are 
the  following  figures  on  their  appropriate  stones: 

1.  When  is  found  a  jasper  and  on  it  a  man  who  has  a 


TALISMANS  AND  AMULETS 


163 


shield  on  his  neck  or  in  his  hand  and  in  the  other  hand  a  spear 
and  under  his  feet  serpents”  (The  Abraxas  god,  of  course)  “it 
gives  power  over  all  enemies. 

2.  When  is  found  on  a  stone  a  man  flying,  that  is  to  say, 
with  wings,  that  stone  has  power  in  business  dealings. 

3.  When  is  found  on  chrysolite  a  woman  having  in  the 
one  hand  a  bird  and  in  the  other  a  fish  it  has  power  in  business 
dealings. 

4.  When  is  found  on  a  stone  a  turtur”  ( either  a  kind  of 
bird  or  a  sting-ray)  “with  an  olive  branch,  this  has  power  that 
you  will  be  well  regarded  by  all. 

5.  When  you  shall  find  on  a  stone  a  serpent  and  an 
archer  fighting,  this  has  power  to  bring  about  peace. 

6.  When  is  found  on  a  white  stone  the  one  half  the  figure 
of  a  woman  and  the  half  part  the  figure  of  a  fish  which  holds 
in  the  hand  a  looking  glass  and  an  olive  branch,  set  in  gold  and 
held  in  the  hand,  it  has  power  that  one  carrying  anything  shall 
not  be  deprived  of  it. 

7.  When  you  shall  find  a  green  jasper  and  on  it  a  cross, 
it  has  power  that  one  carrying  anything  shall  not  be  drowned. 

8.  When  is  found  on  a  stone  a  basilisk  and  a  siren,  that 
is  to  say,  half  woman,  half  fish,  it  has  power  that  you  shall  be 
able  safely  to  walk  among  serpents,” — and  so  on  through  some 
thirty  odd  receipts. 

Dr.  King  quotes  from  a  work  attributed  by  Camillo  to 
Solomon  but  undoubtedly  also  a  product  of  Mediaeval  erudition. 
It  is  thus  introduced : 

“In  the  name  of  the  Lord.  This  is  the  precious  book  which 
the  children  of  Israel  made  in  the  Wilderness  according  to  thy 
name,  O  Lord,  and  according  to  the  course  of  the  stars.” 

Such  a  preface  is  quite  sufficient  to  locate  the  authorship. 
Here  is  the  list  of  magic- working  devices: 

“1.  Old  man  seated  on  a  plough  is  thus  proved.  Take 
clean  black  wool  undyed  and  wrap  up  the  stone  therein;  place 
it  among  wheat  straw  and  lie  with  thy  hand  upon  it :  thou 
shalt  see  in  thy  sleep  all  the  treasures  of  the  kingdom  in  which 


164 


GEMS  IN  MEDIAEVAL  EUROPE 


thou  art  and  how  to  obtain  them.  Water  in  which  it  has  been 
steeped  cures  all  diseases  of  cattle. 

2.  Man  with  helmet  on  his  head,  shield  hung  round  his 
neck  and  sword  raised  on  high  and  trampling  on  a  serpent” 
(Perhaps  also  suggested  by  Abraxas  gems)  “engraved  on 
jasper;  hang  round  thy  neck  and  thou  shalt  not  fear  any  foe, 
yet  be  not  thou  slothful.  In  all  things  shalt  thou  be  victorious, 
especially  in  war.  It  ought  to  be  set  in  brass. 

3.  Horse,  with  a  cockatrice  or  crocodile  on  his  back,  on  a 
jacinth  is  of  power  in  all  conferences  and  debates ;  and  wearing 
it  thou  shalt  be  loved  by  all,  both  man  and  beasts.  It  must 
be  set  in  gold.”  (See  PI.  XXIX,  28.) 

“4.  Man  seated  and  a  woman  standing  before  him  with  her 
hair  hanging  down  to  the  thighs  and  casting  her  eyes  upwards : 
this  engraved  on  carnelian  hath  the  virtue  that  every  man 
and  woman  touched  therewith  will  immediately  become  obedient 
to  thy  will  in  all  things.  It  must  be  set  in  gold  weighing  as 
much  as  the  stone  itself  and,  under  it,  the  herb  betony  and 
ambergris. 

5.  Horse,  with  rider  bearing  a  sceptre,  on  amethyst,  ren¬ 
ders  all  princes  and  nobles  obedient  to  the  owner.  It  ought  to 
be  set  in  twice  its  weight  of  gold  or  silver. 

6.  Horned  animal  having  under  him  a  horse  which  drags 
behind  him  half  a  goat  gives  the  power  of  taming  all  beasts  and 
must  be  set  in  lead.”  (A  gryllus.) 

“7.  Bird  with  olive  leaf  in  its  bill,  cut  on  pyrites  and  set 
in  a  silver  ring.  Having  this  on  thy  right  hand  thou  shalt  be 
invited  to  every  feast  and  those  present  shall  not  eat  but  shall 
gaze  upon  thee.”  (Early  Christian  subject.) 

“8.  Scorpion  and  Sagittarius  fighting  together  on  any 
stone.  Set  this  in  an  iron  ring  and  if  thou  wishest  to  prove 
its  efficacy  impress  it  on  wax  and  whomsoever  thou  shalt  touch 
therewith  they  shall  immediately  quarrel. 

9.  Ram  with  the  half  figure  of  an  ox  on  any  stone.  Set 
in  a  silver  ring  and  whomsoever  thou  shalt  touch  therewith 
they  shall  immediately  be  reconciled  to  one  another. 

10.  Woman,  one  half  fish,  holding  a  mirror  and  a  branch. 


TALISMANS  AND  AMULETS 


165 


Cut  on  a  marine  hyacinth,  set  in  a  gold  ring  and  cover  the 
signet  with  wax  and  wear  on  thy  finger;  and  when  thou  wish- 
est  to  go  anywhere  and  not  be  seen,  hold  the  gem  tight  within 
thy  palm  and  thou  shalt  have  thy  desire. 

11.  Man  ploughing  and  over  him  the  hand  of  the  Lord 
making  a  sign,  and  a  star.  If  cut  on  any  stone  and  worn  in 
all  purity,  thou  shalt  never  perish  by  tempest  nor  shall  thy 
crops  receive  damage  from  storms. 

12.  Head  with  neck,  cut  on  green  jasper,  set  in  brass  or 
iron  ring  engraved  with  the  letters  B  B  P  P  N  E.  Wear  this 
and  thou  shalt  in  no  wise  perish,  but  be  preserved  from  many 
diseases,  especially  fever  and  dropsy.  It  likewise  gives  good 
luck  in  fowling.  Thou  shalt  also  be  reasonable  and  amiable 
in  all  things:  in  battle  and  in  law-suits  thou  shalt  be  victor. 
It  aids  women  in  conceiving  and  in  child-birth,  it  gives  peace 
and  concord,  and  many  good  things  to  the  wearer ;  but  he  must 
do  so  in  all  justice  and  honesty. 

13.  Basilisk  or  Siren,  half  woman,  half  serpent.  With 
this  on  any  gem  thou  shalt  be  able  to  touch  any  venomous 
creature  without  hurt. 

14.  Basilisk  and  dragon  entwined  together  on  carnelian, 
and  also  a  bull’s  head.  Put  it  around  thy  neck  when  thou 
wishest  to  fight  with  any  beast  of  the  wood  or  of  the  sea  and 
they  shall  quickly  be  conquered. 

15.  Man  naked  and  bloated,  crowned  and  holding  a  cup 
and  a  branch;  if  cut  on  jet,  set  in  any  metal,  and  anyone  hav¬ 
ing  a  fever  and  wearing  this  shall  forthwith  be  cured. 

16.  Man  with  bull’s  head  and  eagle’s  feet,  on  any  stone ; 
make  an  impression  thereof  in  wax  and  so  long  as  it  is  upon 
thee  no  man  shall  speak  evil  of  thee. 

17.  Man  standing  and  tall,  holding  an  obolus’’  (patera) 
“in  one  hand  and  a  serpent  in  the  other,  with  the  sun  over  his 
head  and  a  lion  under  his  feet.  If  engraved  on  a  diadochus, 
set  in  a  leaden  ring  and  put  underneath  wormwood  and  fenu¬ 
greek.  Carry  it  to  the  bank  of  a  river  and  call  up  whatsoever 
evil  spirit  thou  pleasest,  and  thou  shalt  have  from  them  an¬ 
swers  to  all  thy  questions. 


166 


GEMS  IN  MEDIAEVAL  EUROPE 


18.  Aquarius,  on  a  green  turquoise :  the  wearer  shall  have 
good  luck  in  all  his  buying  and  selling  so  that  buyers  shall 
seek  after  him.”  (This  may  be  enthusiastically  recommended 
as  a  signet  for  a  traveling  salesman). 

“19.  Youth  having  a  crown  on  his  head  and  seated  on  a 
throne  with  four  legs  and  under  each  leg  a  man  standing  and 
supporting  the  throne  on  his  neck,  round  the  neck  of  the  seated 
figure  a  circle,  and  his  hands  raised  up  to  Heaven.  If  cut  on 
a  white  hyacinth,  it  ought  to  be  set  in  a  silver  ring  of  the 
same  weight  as  the  stone,  and  under  it  put  mastic  and  tur¬ 
pentine.  Make  the  seal  in  wax  and  give  it  to  anyone  and  let 
him  carry  it  about  on  his  neck  or  person,  either  the  wax  or 
the  ring,  and  go  with  pure  mind  and  chastely  before  king,  noble 
or  wise  man,  and  he  shall  obtain  from  them  whatsoever  he  may 
desire. 

20.  Man  seated  on  a  fish”  (Note  the  Taras  riding  a  dolphin 
on  the  Tarentine  coins)  “cut  on  red  jasper,  being  put  upon  the 
dress  of  anyone  at  a  feast  when  eating  with  his  right  hand,  he 
shall  never  be  satisfied,” — (Surely  a  joyous  prospect  for  the 
guest!). 

“21.  Bearded  man  holding  a  flower  in  his  hand,  cut  on  a 
carnelian  and  set  in  a  tin  ring,  the  ring  being  made  at  the 
change  of  the  moon  on  a  Friday,  the  1st  or  8th  of  the  month, 
whomsoever  thou  shalt  touch  therewith  he  shall  come  to  do 
thy  will. 

22.  Serpent  with  a  man  on  his  back  and  a  raven  over  his 
tail,  engraved  on  any  stone,  makes  the  wearer  rich  and  crafty. 

23.  Man  standing  on  a  dragon,  holding  a  sword,  must  be 
set  in  a  leaden  or  iron  ring;  then  all  the  spirits  that  dwell  in 
darkness  shall  obey  the  wearer  and  shall  reveal  unto  him  in 
a  low-toned  song  the  place  of  hidden  treasure  and  the  mode  of 
winning  the  same. 

24.  Man  riding  and  holding  in  one  hand  the  bridle,  in  the 
other  a  bow,  and  girt  with  a  sword,  engraved  on  pyrites.  Set 
in  a  gold  ring  it  will  render  thee  invincible  in  all  battles.  And 
whoever  shall  steep  this  ring  in  oil  of  musk  and  anoint  his 


TALISMANS  AND  AMULETS 


167 


face  with  the  said  oil,  all  that  shall  see  him  shall  fear  him  and 
none  shall  resist. 

25.  Man  erect,  in  armor,  holding  a  drawn  sword  and  wear¬ 
ing  a  helmet,  if  set  in  an  iron  ring  of  the  same  weight  renders 
the  wearer  invincible  in  battle.”  (Regular  hero  type). 

“26.  Man  bearing  in  his  hand  a  mutatio,  cut  on  euchilus, 
makes  the  wearer  to  be  feared  and  respected  by  all  people. 

27.  Winged  horse,  on  any  stone,  is  the  best  for  soldiers 
and  gives  speed  and  courage  in  battle.  It  also  preserves  horses 
from  all  diseases  as  long  as  they  have  it  upon  them.”  ( Pegasus. ) 

“28.  Serpent  twined  around  a  bear,  on  any  stone,  makes 
the  wearer  cunning  and  steady  of  purpose. 

29.  Hercules  holding  a  club  and  slaying  a  lion  or  other 
monster,  engraved  on  any  stone  gives  victory  in  battle.”  (A 
quite  different  influence  from  that  claimed  by  Alexander  of 
Tralles). 

“30.  Tree,  vine  or  wheat-ear,  on  any  stone,  makes  one 
abound  in  food  and  clothing  and  to  have  the  favor  of  the 
great.”  (Typical  symbols). 

“31.  Mars  in  armor  or  a  virgin  in  a  long  robe,  with  a  vest¬ 
ment  wrapped  about  her  and  holding  a  laurel  branch,  cut  on 
jasper,  makes  the  wearer  successful  in  all  undertakings,  defends 
him  from  violent  death  and  drowning  and  all  accidents. 

32.  Mars,  that  is  a  figure  holding  a  lance,  on  any  stone, 
makes  the  bearer  bold,  warlike  and  invincible. 

33.  Jupiter,  the  figure  of  a  man  with  a  ram’s  head,  on 
any  stone,  makes  the  wearer  beloved  by  all  creatures  and  to 
obtain  whatever  he  may  demand.”  (Possibly  the  figure  of 
Jupiter  Ammon). 

“34.  Capricorn,  on  a  carnelian.  Set  in  a  silver  ring  and 
carry  about  with  thee,  thou  shalt  never  be  harmed  in  purse 
or  person  by  thy  enemies,  neither  shall  a  judge  pass  an  unjust 
sentence  against  thee:  thou  shalt  abound  in  business  and  in 
honor  and  gain  the  friendship  of  many,  and  all  enchantments 
made  against  thee  shall  be  of  none  effect  and  no  foe,  however 
powerful,  shall  be  able  to  resist  thee  in  battle.” 

An  interesting  thing  to  note  in  these  lapidaria  is  that, 


168 


GEMS  IN  ME  I)  LEV  AL  EUROPE 


while  there  is  Off  ten  a  suggestion  in  the  subjects  of  the  special 
benefit  to  be  gained  from  the  gem,  there  is  also  very  frequently 
a  curious  mixture  of  the  main  purpose  with  some  incongruous 
triviality.  Another  point  is  that,  of  the  last  list,  1 — 10,  12, 
15,  16,  18,  20,  21,  25,  26,  27,  and  29 — 34  may  be  subjects  found 
on  classical  signets.  Of  the  rest,  while  we  often  find  what  may 
be  a  partially  antique  picture,  some  discordant  feature  is  in¬ 
troduced  which  means  either  that  the  stones  must  have  been 
engraved  in  the  Middle  Ages  or  else  that  the  exponent  of  the 
idea  tried  to  prescribe  something  that  would  be  difficult  or  im¬ 
possible  for  his  disciples  to  obtain.  The  latter  seems  improb¬ 
able  in  view  of  his  acceptance  of  such  common  devices  as  the 
Pegasus,  wheat-ear,  Mars,  and  Hercules.  The  preference  for 
the  jasper  shown  in  the  lapidaria  shows  that  special  magical 
properties  were  believed  to  reside  in  that  stone,  a  superstition 
that  ran  back,  doubtless,  to  late  Roman  times  and  is  in  line 
with  the  vogue  of  the  green  and  bloodstone  varieties  for 
Gnostic  and  other  talismanic  engravings. 

Typical  of  later  Medievalism  and  coming  down  through 
the  Renaissance,  there  is  a  natural  recrudescence  of  the  astro¬ 
logical  talismans  of  the  Empire.  These  are  generally  not  dif¬ 
ficult  to  distinguish  from  the  earlier  work,  since  they  took  their 
ideas  directly  from  the  Arabian  astrologers  and  from  their 
evidently  hazy  notions  of  Egyptian  beliefs,  instead  of  accept¬ 
ing  the  Roman  siftings.  It  is  probable  that  the  Mohammedan 
sages,  influenced  by  their  religious  rule  against  human  and 
animal  pictures,  invented  our  present  day  almanac  signs  of 
planets  and  constellations.  Where  these  are  found  on  gems  the 
inference  of  Mediaeval  or  Renaissance  origin  is  definite.  Of 
other  substitutions,  they  indicated  Gemini  by  two  peacocks, 
Virgo  by  a  wheatsheaf,  Aquarius  by  a  mule  carrying  buckets, 
Ophiuchus  by  a  stork,  Andromeda,  a  sea-calf  and  Engonasin, 
a  saddled  camel.  Where  modern  Hebrew  letterings  are  found 
on  a  gem,  the  proof,  too,  is,  of  course,  obvious. 

Camillo  di  Leonardo,  writing  about  1500  but  evidently 
compiling  his  data  from  much  earlier  beliefs,  propounds  at 
some  length,  the  doctrine  of  trines  and  their  influence,  as,  for 


ASTROLOGICAL  GEMS 


169 


instance,  of  the  first  trine :  that  of  fire  and  made  up  of  Aries, 
Leo  and  Sagittarius,  he  teaches  that  its  lords  are  Sol  by  day, 
Jupiter  by  night,  and  Saturn  at  dawn,  and  that,  hence,  a  gem 
engraved  with  any  one  of  the  above  signs  is  good  against  all 
cold  diseases,  such  as  lethargy,  palsy  and  dropsy,  makes  the 
wearer  eloquent,  ingenious  and  cheerful  and  exalts  him  to 
honor  and  dignity.  The  figure  of  the  lion,  as  symbolizing  the 
house  of  the  Sun,  is  the  most  potent. 

Scaliger,  writing  in  the  second  half  of  the  sixteenth  cen¬ 
tury,  gives,  as  borrowed  by  the  Arabians  from  the  ancient 
Egyptians,  a  catalogue  of  strange  figures  and  groups  as  express¬ 
ing  pictorially  the  influence  of  each  of  the  thirty  degrees  in 
every  sign  upon  the  horoscope  of  one  born  under  it.  Although, 
occasionally,  these  groups  suggest  designs  on  the  talismans  of 
the  Lower  Empire,  most  of  them  have  an  unmistakable  Med¬ 
iaeval  aspect,  such,  for  instance,  as  a  man  holding  a  cross-bow 
in  his  right  hand. 

Altogether,  since  there  was  no  attempt  to  forge  or  even 
to  imitate  directly  in  these  stones,  the  atmosphere  which  sur¬ 
rounded  their  origin  is  pretty  evident. 


CHAPTER  XI 


GEMS  OF  THE  RENAISSANCE 

With  the  opening  of  the  fifteenth  century,  the  Quattro- 
Cento  of  the  Italians,  a  new  spirit  conies  to  influence  and,  at 
last,  control  the  intellectual  development  of  Europe.  Among  the 
learned  there  had  always  been  more  or  less  study  of  such  of 
the  classics  as  were  attainable,  though,  for  the  most  part,  the 
study  was  tinged  with  so  strong  a  religious  selection  and  inter¬ 
pretation  that  it  had  availed  but  little  in  lines  of  general  in¬ 
formation  or  culture. 

Now,  with  the  growth  of  intellectual  curiosity  and  in¬ 
dependence,  the  loosening  of  the  bonds  of  church  discipline 
and,  above  all,  with  the  influx  of  scholars  from  the  East  and 
the  manuscripts  they  brought,  there  arose  what  might  almost 
be  called  a  craze  for  the  study  of  Greek  and  Latin  and  for  the 
collection  of  everything  that  might  throw  light  on  the  earlier 
civilizations  of  Greece  and  Rome.  The  fall  of  Constantinople 
let  loose  a  veritable  flood  of  ancient  learning  upon  the  receptive 
mind  of  Italy,  the  Pagan  spirit  with  its  love  for  beauty  and 
art  revived,  and  even  the  Papacy  was  carried  along  upon  the 
stream.  As  for  the  laity,  no  petty  despot  in  his  hill  fastness 
but  came  to  consider  his  taste  and  culture  an  even  stronger 
claim  to  his  pre-eminence  than  the  fraud  or  force  that  had  won 
it.  Of  course  much  that  was  Mediaeval  survived  during  the 
first  century  of  this  development,  but  the  trend  was  set,  and 
both  the  evil  and  the  good  of  barbarism  were  at  last  swept 
aside  by  the  new-old  thought  and  philosophy  and  tastes. 

In  such  a  movement  it  is  natural  to  look  for  a  revival  of 
the  art  of  gem-engraving  among  the  earliest  manifestations. 
The  gems  were  already  known  and  used,  and  learning  shed  a 
new  light  of  understanding  and  appreciation.  Each  little  stone 
170 


TASTES  AND  TENDENCIES 


171 


carried  its  complete  story  of  beauty  or  thought,  where  the 
statue  fragment  and  the  ruin  were  less  attainable  or  available 
and  held  their  legacies  in  trust  for  a  later  and  more  erudite 
archaeology.  Besides,  the  statue  still  had  its  value  for  the  lime 
kiln,  the  ruin  for  the  builder,  and  the  love  for  art  had  to  be¬ 
come  both  the  saner  and  more  definite  before  it  could  control 
the  desire  for  material  profit.  The  ancient  bronzes,  it  may  be 
said,  were  either  buried  deep  in  soil  or  debris  or  had  gone  long 
since  to  the  melting  furnace. 

So  it  was  that  the  collecting  of  ancient  gems  began  almost 
as  soon  as  did  the  collecting  and  reading  of  the  manuscripts 
that  reawoke  the  interest  in  them,  and  the  impulse  to  rival 
their  art  gathered  rapid  headway. 

During  the  earlier  part  of  the  Renaissance  there  is,  as 
might  be  expected,  a  strong  tincture  of  Gothic  taste  and  Gothic 
stiffness,  and  it  is  difficult  to  distinguish  some  of  the  work  from 
the  output  of  an  earlier  age.  With  the  revelations  of  the  man¬ 
uscripts,  however,  and  the  growing  knowledge  of  the  charm  of 
classic  fable  and  history,  the  artists  turned  to  the  reproduction 
of  the  subjects  that  had  all  the  fascination  of  a  new  world  for 
these  precocious  children.  They  copied  much  directly  but  they 
were  too  proud  of  their  own  achievements  to  copy  with  the 
aim  of  forgery  (PI.  XXX,  13,  15,  17,  20;  XXXI,  6,  8,  13),  and 
the  collectors  of  the  time  valued  the  work  of  their  contempo¬ 
raries  too  highly  as  such  to  tempt  them  very  seriously  in  this 
direction.  Thus  it  is  that  even  their  direct  copies  of  gems  and 
coins  have  in  them  so  much  of  the  spirit  of  the  period  that  it  is 
not  difficult  to  place  them,  especially  in  the  better  class  of  work. 
Naturally  the  cameos  attracted  their  emulation  much  more 
seriously  than  did  the  intaglios,  and  the  demand  for  the  former 
as  ornaments  was  very  great.  We  find  a  distinct  reversal  of  the 
proportionate  product,  a  proportion  which  has  continued  ever 
since.  Genuine  ancient  cameos  are  very  rare,  but  the  output  of 
Renaissance  and  modern  times  can  be  realized  from  the  Somer¬ 
ville  Collection  at  the  University  of  Pennsylvania,  largely 
modern  examples,  where  they  outnumber  the  intaglios  at  least 
three  to  one.  Of  course,  intaglios  were  cut  in  considerable 


172 


GEMS  OF  THE  RENAISSANCE 


numbers,  both  large  and  small,  but  the  latter  were  usually  for 
signets  and  often  expressed  contemporary  ideas.  When  the 
artists  worked  for  the  art  alone  larger  stones  seemed  to  offer 
better  opportunities,  and,  since  there  was  no  intent  to  deceive, 
there  was  no  reason  to  bar  such  a  selection,  even  had  they 
realized  its  implication.  When  they  did  copy  from  the  antique, 
on  small  stones,  the  subjects  are  apt  to  be  either  portraits  or 
distinctly  “pretty,”  such,  for  instance,  as  wrestling  Cupids  in 
active  rather  than  conventional  poses.  When,  as  in  the  great 
majority  of  instances,  they  merely  took  ancient  subjects  and 
represented  them  in  their  own  way,  we  find  the  unmistakable 
treatment  which,  beginning  at  this  time,  extended  down  to  the 
decay  of  the  art.  Often  their  ambition  impelled  them  to  com¬ 
positions  of  many  figures  (PI.  XXX,  16;  XXXI,  1,  10 — 12),  as 
in  the  Bacchic  procession  on  the  so-called  signet  of  Michael 
Angelo  (PI.  XXXI,  2),  and  always  to  dramatic  poses  or  to  pro¬ 
nounced  action,  often  violent  and  very  foreign  to  the  repose  and 
restraint  we  find  in  the  bad  as  well  as  the  good  work  of  the 
Classic  artists.  This  tendency  finds  its  extreme  development  in 
the  Poniatowski  Gems  to  be  considered  on  a  later  page.  That 
the  best  Renaissance  work  is  inferior  to  the  best  antique,  does 
not  reach  its  delicacy,  lightness,  certainty,  and  technical  com¬ 
pleteness,  is  somewhat  a  matter  of  taste  and  apt  to  involve 
observation  of  which  only  the  practised  eye  is  capable.  That  the 
artists  lacked  personality  and  originality  is  more  obvious. 
Altogether,  the  danger  of  confusing  it  with  good  original  en¬ 
gravings  of  still  later  times  is  much  more  serious  than  the  risk 
of  mistaking  any  of  it,  save  the  direct  copies,  for  examples  of  the 
art  from  which  it  drew  its  inspiration.  To  summarize,  the 
tendency  was  from  a  Gothic  stiffness  to  the  extreme  of  modern 
looseness,  skipping  over  entirely  the  restraint  in  conception 
united  with  the  freedom  in  execution  which  characterizes  the 
ideal  of  Classic  art  and  craftsmanship.  A  very  high  polish  is 
also  characteristic,  and  they  repolished  the  surfaces  of  many 
ancient  gems,  much  to  their  damage,  though  the  claim  that  they 
retouched  them  does  not  seem  to  be  authenticated  to  any  wide 
extent. 


EARLY  DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  ART 


173 


To  take  up  the  history  of  the  development  which  involves 
the  names  and  work  of  individual  artists,  perhaps  the  earliest 
allusion  is  found  in  Scipio  Ammirato’s  History  of  Florence, 
where  he  speaks  of  a  unique  engraver  of  intaglios  in  stone, 
named  Peruzzi,  as  having  forged,  in  1379,  the  signet  of  Carlo 
di  Durazzo.  Nothing  is  known  of  the  subject  or  of  the  other 
works  of  Peruzzi,  though  Dr.  King  assumes,  without  much 
reason,  that  Carlo’s  signet  was  not  an  antique.  Doubtless  the 
forgery  was  for  other  purposes  than  to  deceive  collectors. 

Vasari  writes  of  the  fifteenth  century:  “The  art  of  engrav¬ 
ing  on  hard  stones  and  precious  stones  was  lost,  together  with 
the  other  arts  of  design,  after  the  fall  of  Greece  and  Rome.  For 
many  and  many  a  year  it  continued  lost,  so  that  nobody  was 
found  to  attend  to  it,  and,  although  something  was  still  done, 
yet  it  was  not  of  the  kind  that  one  should  take  account  there¬ 
of”  (Doubtless  referring  to  the  Mediaeval  Gothic  or  Byzantine 
art  as  opposed  to  the  Classic  ideas  that  were  the  rage  in 
Vasari’s  day)  ;  “And,  so  far  as  there  is  any  record,  there  is  no 
one  to  be  found  who  began  to  work  well  and  to  get  into  the 
good  way,  except  in  the  times  of  Martin  V”  (1417)  “and  of 
Paul  II”  (1464).  “Thenceforward  it  went  on  improving  until 
Lorenzo  the  Magnificent”  (1448 — 1492).  Of  Paul  II,  we  know 
that  he  was  a  lover  of  gems  and  that  he  left  a  fine  collection 
to  his  heirs,  while  Lorenzo,  having  inherited  many  valuable  an¬ 
tiques  from  his  father,  Piero  dei  Medici,  added  to  it  the  collec¬ 
tion  of  Paul  II  and  numerous  other  works,  both  of  the  ancients 
and  of  artists  of  his  own  time  who  flourished  under  his  patron¬ 
age.  The  inscription,  LAVR.MED,  was  cut  on  many  of  these 
and  serves  to  identify  specimens  owned  by  this  connoisseur 
but  now  scattered  through  the  World’s  great  cabinets.  The 
Accademia  di  S.  Marco  was  founded  by  Lorenzo  in  1488  to  en¬ 
courage  the  cultivation  of  all  the  fine  arts. 

Camillo  di  Leonardo,  in  his  Speculum  Lapidum  published 
in  1502  and  writing  necessarily  of  the  artists  of  the  fifteenth 
century, the  Quattro-Cento,  speaks  of  their  works  as  being  “Dif¬ 
fused  all  over  Italy  and  not  to  be  distinguished  from  the  an¬ 
tique.”  The  latter  judgment,  of  course,  does  not  apply  to  the 


174 


GEMS  OF  THE  RENAISSANCE 


knowledge  of  today.  He  mentions  four  cutters  of  intaglios  as 
being  pre-eminent :  Giovanni  Maria  da  Mantova  at  Rome,  Fran¬ 
cesco  Nichini  da  Ferrara  at  Venice,  Jacopo  Tagliacarne  at 
Genoa,  and  Leonardo  da  Milano  at  Milan.  Mariette  hazards 
a  most  interesting  surmise  that  the  last  named  was  no  other 
than  Leonardo  da  Vinci,  and  many  things  seem  to  make  the 
identification  plausible.  His  wonderful  versatility  is  known  to 
have  included  work  in  gold  and  enamel,  Milan  had  been  his 
home  after  1483,  and  Leonardo  and  Camillo  were  at  one  time 
respectively  architect  and  physician  to  Caesar  Borgia.  The 
strong  argument  contra  is  that  there  is  no  record  in  his  works 
or  in  those  of  others  of  his  proficiency  in  this  art. 

Also  in  the  fifteenth  century  was  the  first  gem-cutter  re¬ 
corded  by  name  in  Vasari :  Giovanni  delle  Carniole  who  worked, 
as  his  sobriquet  indicates,  on  carnelian  and  was  under  the 
patronage  of  Lorenzo  dei  Medici.  “An  infinite  number”  of  his 
gems  “both  large  and  small”  were  extant  in  Vasari’s  time,  the 
most  famous  of  which,  still  in  the  Uffizi  cabinet  at  Florence,  is 
the  deeply  cut  portrait  of  Savonarola  on  a  carnelian  two  inches 
in  diameter.  Prospero  delle  Carniole,  of  whom  little  is  known, 
seems  to  have  been  his  contemporary.  Of  the  same  period  was 
Domenico  Campagni  dei  Camei  who  lived  at  Milan  and  whose 
name  indicates,  also,  the  nature  of  his  work,  but  Vasari  speaks 
of  a  wonderful  intaglio  portrait  of  Ludovico  il  Moro,  on  a  large 
balas  ruby,  as  being  from  his  hand. 

In  the  sixteenth  century  were  Piero  Maria  da  Pescia,  the 
probable  engraver  of  the  gem  of  Michael  Angelo  referred  to 
above  (PI.  XXXI,  2),  and  Michelino,  a  worker  in  intaglio  on 
carnelians,  both  employed  by  Leo  X.  Also  Nicolo  Avanzi  of 
Verona  followed  his  profession  at  Rome  and  did  intaglios  and 
cameos,  his  best  recorded  gem  being  a  birth  of  Christ,  with 
many  other  figures,  on  a  two  inch  lapis  lazuli.  Mondella,  an¬ 
other  Veronese,  found  employment  at  the  capital  of  Christen¬ 
dom. 

That  Benvenuto  Cellini  may  have  tried  his  hand  at  this 
art  is  based  on  his  account  of  his  engraving  the  Zodiac  and 
heavenly  bodies  on  a  ball  of  crystal,  and  on  a  Bacchanalian 


ARTISTS  OF  THE  SIXTEENTH  CENTURY  175 


scene,  signed  Cellini,  engraved  on  the  lid  of  a  lapis  lazuli  box 
once  belonging  to  Cardinal  Gonsalvi  but  now  in  England.  Of 
course  the  latter  may  well  bear  a  forged  signature,  but  the 
contrary  supposition  is  altogether  credible. 

At  Bologna  were  Matteo  dei  Benedetti  who  died  in  1532, 
Marco  Attio  Moretti,  who  was  famous  there  as  early  as  1493, 
and  Furnius  di  Bologna.  Skill  in  the  art  is  also  attributed  to 
the  painter,  Francia.  Pomponius  Gauricus  ranks  Furnius  as 
equal  to  Pyrgoteles  and  Dioskourides  as  he  also  does  Foppa 
Caradosso  of  Milan.  Severo  da  Ravenna  he  places  highest  of 
all. 

In  Germany  there  was  Heinrich  Engelhart  of  Nuremburg, 
a  friend  of  Albrecht  Diirer,  who  engraved  coats  of  arms  on 
gems. 

Giovanni  del  Castel  Bolognese  was  the  earliest  Renais¬ 
sance  gem-cutter  whom  we  know  of  as  signing  his  work :  either 
IOANNE  B— 10,  CASTEL  BON— 10  or  C.  B.  He  was 
first  under  the  patronage  of  Alfonso  of  Ferrara,  then  of  Car¬ 
dinal  Ippolito  dei  Medici,  and  then  of  Cardinal  Alessandro 
Farnese.  His  most  accounted  works  were  intaglios  on  large 
rock-crystals  of  such  subjects  as  an  assault  on  a  castle,  done 
for  Alfonso  of  Ferrara,  the  four  evangelists  for  Pope  Clement 
VII,  the  wife  of  Darius  before  Alexander,  the  Rape  of  the 
Sabines  for  Cardinal  Ippolito,  Crucifixion  and  Passion  pictures, 
scenes  of  contemporary  battles  and  sieges,  and  many  classical 
subjects,  two  of  which,  Tityos  and  the  Fall  of  Phaethon,  were 
executed  for  Cardinal  Ippolito  from  designs  by  Michael  An¬ 
gelo  :  also  he  engraved  portraits,  especially  one  of  Margaret  of 
Parma.  The  characteristics  of  his  intaglios  are  shallowness  of 
the  cutting,  rather  stiff  drawing,  elaborate  finish,  and  high 
polish  of  the  interiors,  though  the  Tityos  lacks  this  entirely. 

Valerio  dei  Belli  (II  Vicentino)  was  perhaps  the  most 
prolific  gem-engraver  of  the  period  and  ranked  very  high  until 
his  death  in  1546.  He  was  employed  by  Clement  VII  and  Paul 
III.  His  drawing  is  rather  more  free  than  that  of  Giovanni 
del  Castel  Bolognese  and  his  technical  skill  at  least  as  high, 
but  he  had  little  originality  and  copied  largely  from  the  an- 


176 


GEMS  OF  THE  RENAISSANCE 


tique.  Portrait  cameos  and  rock-crystal  intaglios  of  sacred 
and  classical  subjects,  together  with  numberless  gems  both 
large  and  small,  heads,  figures  and  historical  scenes,  bore  wit¬ 
ness  to  his  industry  and  vogue.  His  signature,  YALE  or 
YA.  VI.  F,  was  always  cut  on  his  works  (See  PI.  XXXI, 
12).  His  daughter,  taught  by  him,  also  attained  some  distinc¬ 
tion  in  the  art. 

Matteo  del  Nassaro  of  Verona  learned  gem-cutting  at  Rome 
from  his  fellow  Veronese,  Avanzi  and  Mondella.  He,  too,  ex¬ 
ecuted  many  of  the  fashionable  intaglios  on  large  rock-crystals, 
including  a  Venus  and  Cupid  and  a  piece  showing  figures  of 
all  the  planets.  Of  cameos,  of  which  he  did  a  great  number, 
the  most  famous  was  a  Deposition  from  the  Cross  on  blood¬ 
stone,  so  managed  that  the  red  spots  on  the  jasper  represented 
the  drops  of  blood.  Later  he  went  to  Paris  and  enjoyed  the 
patronage  of  Francis  I  for  whom  and  his  courtiers  he  worked 
unceasingly  on  ornamental  cameos,  notably  a  head  of  Dejanira 
in  chalcedony.  Other  fine  gems  are  attributed  to  him,  especial¬ 
ly  a  large  cameo  portrait  of  Diane  de  Poitiers.  There  seems 
to  be  no  positive  evidence  that  he  signed,  though  Mariette  reads 
the  letters,  O.  P.  N.  S.,  found  on  certain  gems  in  the  French  col¬ 
lection,  “Opus  Nassari  sculptoris.” 

Marmita,  the  elder,  of  Parma,  engraved  many  gems  after 
the  antique  but  Luigi  Marmita,  his  son,  in  the  service  of  Car¬ 
dinal  Salviati,  at  Rome,  reached  a  much  higher  degree  of  ex¬ 
cellence.  His  most  famous  work  was  a  cameo  head  of  Sokrates. 

Domenico  di  Polo  flourished  at  Florence  along  1536  and 
worked  at  intaglios  for  Alessandro  and  Cosimo  dei  Medici. 

Luigi  Anichini  of  Ferrara  located  at  Venice  and  was  noted 
for  the  precision  of  his  small  intaglios.  King  attributes  to  him 
certain  microscopic  battle-pieces  and  many  figures  done  in 
cameo. 

Leone  Leoni  of  Arezzo  worked  for  Charles  V,  notably  in 
cameo. 

Alessandro  Cesati  (II  Greco)  is  said  by  Vasari  to  have 
surpassed  all  the  rest  and  engraved  innumerable  gems.  He 
did,  for  Cardinal  Farnese,  an  intaglio  portrait  of  Henry  II  in 


ARTISTS  OF  THE  SIXTEENTH  CENTURY  177 


carnelian,  an  inch  in  diameter,  which  was  especially  praised  by 
Vasari,  a  lion  looking  out  of  his  den  in  intaglio  on  a  burnt 
onyx,  and  many  fine  cameos,  foremost  among  which  is  a  head 
of  Phokion  in  the  Florence  Collection,  signed,  nYPrOTEAHZ 
EnOIEI;  the  earliest  example,  I  think,  of  the  forgeries  of 
ancient  signatures,  though  the  idea  here  was  probably  mere  vain¬ 
gloriousness.  His  regular  signature  was  AAEEANAPOZ  EnOIE!, 
either  in  full  or  abbreviated,  and  King  suspects  that  many 
gems  signed  “EAAHN,”  a  translation  of  his  sobriquet,  are  by 
him  (PI.  XXX,  13). 

Giovanni  Antonio  dei  Rossi,  a  Milanese,  worked  at  Flor¬ 
ence  under  Cosimo  dei  Medici,  for  whom  he  did  a  cameo  in 
onyx,  seven  inches  in  diameter,  with  portraits  of  the  duke, 
his  wife,  and  his  seven  children.  By  him,  also,  is  an  intaglio 
on  carnelian  of  a  throned  Saturn  with  a  scythe.  He  signed, 
G.  ROSSI.  Agostino  del  Riccio  mentions  Georgio,  Ambrogio, 
and  Stefano  as  Milanese  engravers  of  the  time,  as  were  Gasparo 
and  Girolamo  Misuroni  and  Jacopo  da  Trezzo.  The  last  named 
was  especially  famous  for  his  portraits,  generally  done  in  re¬ 
lief,  among  which  wTas  a  head  of  Philip  II,  who  had  summoned 
him  to  Madrid.  He  is  said  to  have  discovered  a  mode  of  en¬ 
graving  on  the  diamond  and  to  have  executed  a  coat  of  arms  of 
Philip  in  that  stone.  The  testimony  of  several  witnesses,  how¬ 
ever,  awards  the  credit  of  the  discovery  to  Clement  Birago, 
another  Milanese  in  the  service  of  Philip,  and  the  works  cited 
are  a  portrait  of  Don  Carlos  and  a  seal  bearing  the  Spanish 
arms.  Jacobus  Thronius,  too,  is  said  to  have  cut  a  coat  of  arms 
of  Queen  Mary  of  England  on  a  diamond. 

Tortorino  Taverna  of  Milan  was  a  good  engraver  of  cameos 
and  Giuliano  Taverna,  in  rock-crystal  (See  PI.  XXX,  14). 

Giovanni  Giacomo  Caraglio  of  Verona  went  to  Poland, 
at  the  invitation  of  Sigismund  I,  where  he  is  known  to  have 
lived  as  late  as  1569,  working  in  cameo  and  on  rock-crystals. 

Annibale  Fontana,  who  died  at  Milan  in  1587,  was  famed 
for  both  cameos  and  intaglios. 

Philippo  (Pippo  Santo  Croce)  worked  at  Genoa  and  left 
descendants  who  followed  his  art. 


178 


GEMS  OF  THE  RENAISSANCE 


Antonio  Dordoni  of  Bussetto,  in  Parma,  died  at  Rome  in 
1584  and  is  said  to  have  done,  among  many  other  works,  sev¬ 
eral  intaglio  temple  fagades  in  the  Stosch  Collection. 

Flaminius  Natalis,  noted  as  an  engraver  of  coats  of  arms, 
died  at  Rome  in  1596. 

Christopher  Schwargen  of  Augsburg  (?)  died  in  1600. 

One  of  the  latest  known  engravers  of  the  sixteenth  century 
was  Alessandro  Masagno,  who  went  from  Milan  to  the  court 
of  the  Emperor  Rudolph  II,  but  the  last  of  the  Cinque-Cento 
school  is  Olivier  Coldore,  who  cut,  in  1590,  on  a  ruby,  a  remark¬ 
able  and  often  copied  head  of  Henry  IV  and  worked  at  Paris, 
under  the  patronage  of  that  king  and  of  his  son  Louis  XIII, 
well  into  the  seventeenth  century.  No  figures  have  been  at¬ 
tributed  to  him  but  only  heads,  generally  in  intaglio.  He  seems 
to  have  signed  at  least  some  of  his  work  with  the  letters  C.  D.  F., 
which  appear  on  several  cameos  and  on  an  octagonal  sapphire 
bearing  an  intaglio  bust  of  Henry  IV.  It  has  been  read  “Col¬ 
dore  fecit.”  His  identity  with  one  Julian  de  Fontenay,  men¬ 
tioned  in  letters  patent  of  1608  as  the  king’s  valet  and  engraver 
of  precious  stones,  has  been  asserted. 

With  the  opening  of  the  seventeenth  century,  the  Sei-Cento 
of  the  Italians,  the  impulse  of  the  Renaissance  toward  gem¬ 
engraving  seems  to  have  exhausted  itself  and  the  work  falls 
off  in  excellence,  especially  in  Italy,  where  the  Catholic  revival 
substituted  a  line  of  severe  ascetics  for  the  half  Pagan  humanist 
popes  who  had  gone  before,  and  in  France,  then  devastated  by 
religious  feuds. 

In  Austria  and  Bavaria,  however,  where  the  Renaissance 
started  somewhat  later,  it  maintained  a  pretty  high  standard 
until  1650.  The  tendency  toward  overdone  action  increased, 
and  the  classic  repose  fled  still  farther  from  their  attainment. 
Many  new  stones  were  used,  especially  those  offering  new  color 
combinations  for  cameos,  and  difficulty  for  difficulty’s  sake  at¬ 
tracted  them  more  and  more.  It  seems  that  the  desire  for  an¬ 
cient  gems  was  growing,  and  contemporary  art  began  to  find 
less  encouragement,  a  development  which  continued  and  paved 
the  way  for  the  many  forgeries  which  finally  killed  the  vogue. 


ARTISTS  OF  THE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY  179 


Sold  for  £700  with  the  Demidoff  Collection  in  the  nine¬ 
teenth  century  is  a  curiously  complicated  cameo  showing  Mars 
and  Venus  caught  in  the  snare  of  Vulcan  and  exhibited  by  him 
to  all  the  shocked  deities  of  Olympus,  who  are  indicated  by 
a  circle  of  busts.  The  anvil  and  tongs  of  Vulcan,  the  dove  of 
Venus,  and  the  helmet  and  shield  of  Mars  occupy  corners  of  the 
stone,  while  the  cock,  who  should  have  warned  the  lovers  but 
failed  in  his  duty,  stands  at  Vulcan’s  feet.  The  inscription  reads, 
D.CALABRESI.FECE.IN.ROMA.  The  artist  has  not  been 
identified  but  the  story  is  that,  imprisoned  for  five  years,  he 
worked  steadily  on  the  gem  and  procured  his  release  from  Pope 
Gregory  XIII  by  its  presentation. 

Among  the  artists  maintained  by  Rudolph  II,  at  Vienna, 
were  Lehmann,  who  is  better  known  for  his  discovery  of  the 
art  of  engraving  on  glass,  and  Miseron,  who  was  rewarded  by 
being  made  noble.  His  son,  Deries,  was  in  the  service  of  the 
Emperor  Matthias. 

Raspe  thinks  that  “ANNIBAL”  is  the  signature  of  a  gem- 
engraver  who  lived  at  Clausthal  about  1650  and  did  medals 
for  the  princes  of  the  houses  of  Brandenburgh  and  Hanover. 

Giulianelli  writes  that  Ferdinand  II,  at  Florence  (1627), 
employed  even  more  artists  than  did  his  father  Cosimo  II,  and 
gives  the  names  of  Castrucci,  Carrioni  of  Milan,  Giaffiere, 
Monicca  and  Gasparini.  He  also  speaks  of  Perriciuole  at  Sienna, 
Chiavenni  and  Vaghi  at  Modena,  and  a  family  named  Siletti 
who  lived  at  Ferrara,  but  no  works  of  these  men  seem  to  be 
known. 

Adoni,  at  Rome,  did  mostly  cameos  of  clasped  hands, 
known  as  “fedi”  and  used  for  betrothal  rings. 

Borgognone  flourished  at  Florence  about  1670  and  cut 
many  intaglios :  death’s-heads  in  ruby,  a  sun  in  rock-crystal  for 
a  watchcase,  a  true-lover’s-knot,  also  in  rock-crystal,  a  tiger 
recumbent  with  a  thyrsos  and  broken  dart,  and,  of  course,  heads. 
Stefano  Mochi  was  his  contemporary. 

Under  Louis  XIII  worked  the  Maurices,  father  and  son. 

Suzon  Rey,  a  Frenchman,  lived  at  Rome  and  did  all  sorts 
of  subjects,  noted  among  which  were  a  head  of  Carlo  Albani, 


180 


GEMS  OF  THE  RENAISSANCE 


brother  of  Pope  Clement  XI,  and  a  seal  for  the  Marchese 
Castel  San  Vito. 

Thomas  Simon,  who  designed  the  coinage  of  Oliver  Crom¬ 
well,  is  also  believed  to  have  engraved  gems,  on  the  strength 
of  certain  cameo  portraits  of  Clarendon  and  the  Protector. 

Portraiture  was  the  most  successful  work  done  all  through 
this  epoch.  The  later  engravers  also  produced  many  heads  of 
deities  and  philosophers,  coarsely  cut  in  stones  of  considerable 
size,  together  with  unskilful  copies  of  works  of  better  periods. 

In  leaving  the  gems  of  the  late  Renaissance  attention  must 
be  called  to  the  great  number  of  intaglios  engraved  in  the 
roughest  manner  on  lapis  lazuli,  many  of  the  pictures  being  im¬ 
itations  of  the  antique.  Often  it  is  extremely  difficult  to  dis¬ 
tinguish  these  from  bad  work  of  the  Lower  Empire,  since  the 
roughness  is  of  a  similar  character.  Very  careful  examination 
is  necessary  to  remove  many  gems  of  this  type  from  the  doubt¬ 
ful  class. 


CHAPTER  XII 


GEMS  OF  MODERN  TIMES 

With  the  eighteenth  century  came  a  new  revival  of  gem¬ 
engraving,  excellent  in  its  technique  but  ever  to  be  regretted 
in  its  tendencies.  Whereas  the  artists  of  the  Renaissance  had, 
for  the  most  part,  striven  in  honest  emulation  of  the  ancients, 
yet  naively  following  their  own  ideas  and  methods,  the  clever 
craftsmen  of  the  eighteenth,  the  Century  of  the  Dilettanti,  were 
nothing  more  than  conscious  imitators,  at  the  best,  and  rank 
forgers  at  the  worst.  For  every  ancient  gem  of  note,  many 
copies,  more  or  less  exact,  were  turned  loose  on  the  market. 
Beautiful  antique  pastes  were  eagerly  sought,  copied  and  then 
destroyed  to  guard  against  possible  identifications,  doublets  of 
glass,  moulds  of  gems  pasted  on  stone,  were  fabricated  and  are 
difficult  of  detection  when  set  in  rings,  old  gems  were  retouched 
and  even  recut,  and  the  names  of  real  and  imaginary  artists  of 
antiquity  were  interpolated  on  many  stones  to  meet  the  cur¬ 
rent  belief  of  the  amateurs  that  the  ancient  artists  habitually 
signed  their  work. 

Gem-collecting  now  reached  the  stage  of  mania.  Baron 
Stosch,  a  Hanoverian  spy  on  the  movements  of  the  Pretender 
at  Rome,  formed  a  large  cabinet  of  gems,  genuine  and  forged, 
many,  presumably,  at  his  own  instigation,  the  whole  of  which 
was  bought  by  Frederick  of  Prussia  for  30,000  ducats  and  now 
forms  part  of  the  Berlin  collection.  The  Due  d’Orleans  and  the 
Dukes  of  Devonshire  and  Marlborough  paid  incredible  sums  for 
fine  examples  of  the  art.  Lippert  is  authority  for  the  statement 
that  the  latter  paid  Stosch  £1000  for  the  cow  of  “Apollonides,” 
a  gem  which  has  been  seriously  questioned  and  its  signature 
utterly  disproved.  He  also  bought,  from  Sevin  of  Paris,  for 

181 


182 


GEMS  OF  MODERN  TIMES 


the  same  price,  the  Diomedes  with  the  Palladium  of  Felix.  La 
Chaux  tells  that  the  Duke  of  Devonshire  paid  Zanetti  of  Venice 
£1200  for  four  gems,  and  Raspe,  that  he  paid  300  guineas  for  a 
cameo  portrait  of  Vespasian.  So  the  figures  run  and  it  is  easy 
to  see  how  they  must  have  inspired  the  forgers. 

Catherine  II  of  Russia  plunged  enthusiastically  into  the 
game  and,  as  I  have  already  said,  even  George  III  was  inspired 
to  establish  a  reputation  for  artistic  taste  by  purchasing  the 
collection  of  Consul  Smith. 

With  the  affected  classicism  of  the  Republic  and  First  Em¬ 
pire,  Heliogabalus  himself  was  outdone,  and  alleged  ancient 
gems  decorated  the  persons  of  the  exquisites,  male  and  female, 
literally  from  head  to  foot.  Josephine  was  among  the  foremost 
in  the  field  and  it  cannot  be  denied  her  opportunities  for  plun¬ 
der  were  excellent. 

Still,  the  danger  today  is  less  than  might  be  imagined  from 
such  wholesale  and  high  priced  fabrication.  With  all  their 
skill  and  cleverness  the  forgers  did  not  know  the  game.  They 
cut  intaglios  in  large  numbers  as  well  as  cameos,  but  they  lost 
sight  of  the  fact  that  the  ancient  intaglios  were  almost  inva¬ 
riably  made  for  signet  rings  and  they  saw  no  reason  against 
copying  their  subjects  on  stones  much  too  large  for  that  pur¬ 
pose.  Knowledge  and  common  sense  with  a  careful  application 
of  the  principles  I  have  laid  down  in  the  Introduction  should 
leave  few  of  these  efforts  that  will  give  very  serious  trouble  now 
or,  perhaps,  to  put  it  more  conservatively,  should  leave  a  large 
proportion  of  them  that  will  fall  easily  in  my  classes  4  and  5. 
Furtwiingler  writes  of  the  signature  forgeries,  that  those  done 
down  to  1750  were  inadequate  but  that  in  the  second  half  of 
the  eighteenth  century  the  antique  method  of  writing  was  so 
well  reproduced  that  it  is  often  difficult  and  sometimes  impos¬ 
sible  to  judge  from  the  signature  alone.  Of  the  pictures  he 
says,  it  is  instructive  to  compare  admitted  copies  by  the  best 
artists  with  the  original  stones  and  that  you  always  find  a 
marked  difference.  In  poor  work  this  difference  would,  natur¬ 
ally,  be  less  clearly  defined  but  fortunately  the  poor  work  was 
not  the  kind  that  tempted  really  clever  fabricators. 


ARTISTS  OF  THE  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY  183 


Of  the  artists  of  this  time  Flavio  Sirletti,  who  died  at 
Rome  in  1737,  was,  perhaps,  the  most  famous.  He  used  the 
diamond  point  in  finishing  his  work,  Gori  states,  at  the  sug¬ 
gestion  of  Baron  Stosch.  Especially  prized  were  his  portrait 
heads,  whether  of  contemporaries,  like  that  of  the  painter,  Carlo 
Maratta,  or  of  the  ancients,  like  his  copy  of  the  bust  of  Cara- 
calla.  Also  highly  valued  were  his  admirable  intaglio  copies 
of  such  ancient  statues  as  the  Farnese  Hercules,  the  Giustin- 
iani  Mercury  riding  a  ram,  the  Apollo,  and  the  Laocoon.  The 
last  named,  an  amethyst,  was  bought  by  the  Duke  of  Beaufort. 
The  signature  on  his  acknowledged  works  is  either  4>£  or 
4>AABI0Y,  but  he  also  inserted  many  spurious  ancient  signa¬ 
tures  on  old  gems  and  it  is  alleged  that  the  collections  of 
Andreini,  Stosch  and  the  Jew,  Medina,  at  Livorno,  afterward 
bought  by  Lord  Bessborough,  “profitted”  largely  from  his 
practices.  His  two  sons,  Francesco,  who  signed,  4>P  (or  4>PATK) 
ZIPAHTOZ  (PL  XXXII,  13),  and  Raimondo,  followed  his  pro¬ 
fession  at  Rome. 

Domenico  Landi,  at  Rome,  was  accounted  an  artist  of  high 
merit.  His  best  works  were  a  bust  portrait  of  Augustus  in 
chalcedony  and  a  portrait  in  emerald  of  N.  Daodo,  the  Venetian 
envoy  to  Rome;  also  two  large  gems  with  four  heads  on  each, 
on  one,  those  of  Trajan,  Plotina,  Marcianus  and  Matidia  and 
on  the  other  those  of  Severus,  Julia,  Caracalla  and  Geta. 

Christian  Reisen,  a  Dane  by  descent,  lived  in  England  and 
died  in  1725,  leaving  many  intaglios.  A  portrait  of  Charles 
XII  of  Sweden  is  his  best  known  work. 

Claus,  his  pupil,  excelled  him  and  died  in  1739,  and  Smart, 
another  pupil,  was  working  in  Paris  in  1722  and  was  famous 
for  his  ability,  according  to  Mariette,  to  do  several  fair  por¬ 
traits  in  a  day.  Seaton,  a  third,  was  at  the  head  of  the  pro¬ 
fession  in  London  in  1750.  He  finished  his  gems  elaborately 
but  they  are,  according  to  King,  cold,  weak  and  spiritless. 

M.  Aschari  in  1725  signs  a  fine  bust  of  Diana  on  a  pale 
topaz. 

Anton  Pichler,  1697 — 1779,  settled  at  Naples  in  1730  and 
was  famous  for  imitating  the  antique.  His  usual  subjects  were 


184 


GEMS  OF  MODERN  TIMES 


figures  of  Venus  and  Cupid.  His  signature,  often  found,  is  A.  TT. 

Girolamo  Rossi  worked  at  Livorno  about  1730. 

Johann  Christopher  Dorsch  of  Nuremburg,  1676 — 1732, 
did  much  work  in  the  style  of  the  Renaissance  and  also  a  large 
number  of  poor  imperial  heads.  Two  daughters  followed  his 
profession,  one  of  whom,  Susanna,  better  known  as  Madame 
Preissler,  was  his  superior  both  in  cameos  and  intaglios.  Her 
brother-in-law,  the  younger  Preissler,  also  did  good  work. 

F.  J.  Barier,  born  at  Paris  in  1680,  is  known  as  an  engraver 
of  modern  portraits  and  was  employed  by  Louis  XV. 

Jacques  Guay  of  Marseilles  followed  him  in  this  employ¬ 
ment  and  did  a  fine  cameo  bust  of  the  King,  also  a  good  portrait 
of  Cr§billon  and  many  heads  from  the  antique  which  Mariette 
calls  perfect  imitations.  His  Victory  of  Fontenoy  on  a  sard 
is  very  spirited  and  many  of  his  gems  are  in  the  Bibliotheque 
National. 

Becker,  who  died  in  1743,  was  accounted  the  first  of  his 
profession  in  Germany.  Born  at  Coblenz,  he  went  to  Vienna 
and  thence  to  St.  Petersburg,  at  the  invitation  of  Peter  the 
Great.  His  only  known  portraits  on  gems  were  of  Charles  VI 
and  of  Prince  Eugene.  Most  of  his  work  was  coats  of  arms 
of  various  German  princes.  Several  gems  of  this  period  are 
signed,  Hecker,  probably  another  artist,  though  King  suggests 
it  is  merely  a  misspelling  of  the  name. 

F.  Ghingi  worked  at  Naples  in  1750. 

Waldev  of  Strasburg  is  little  known  except  from  the  praise 
of  his  pupil,  F.  M.  Fabii,  a  Venetian,  who  practised  his  art  at 
Vienna  and  cut  numerous  cameos,  including  an  Otho,  a  Pallas, 
and  an  Alexander  in  sardonyx.  Among  his  intaglios  were  sards 
with  heads  of  Julia,  daughter  of  Titus,  Pallas  and  Cybele. 

Masini,  also  a  Venetian,  did  excellent  work  at  Florence, 
where,  also,  were  located,  L.  M.  Weber,  A.  Santini,  Giovanni 
Cavini  and  A.  Ricci  (Briosco  Crispo)  : — all  these  along  the 
middle  of  the  eighteenth  century. 

Francesco  Borghigiani  was  born  at  Florence  in  1727  but 
went  to  Rome  in  1751,  where  he  did  cameo  heads  of  Sokrates, 
Tiberius  and  Faustina  and  an  intaglio  of  Regulus.  Thence  he 


ARTISTS  OF  THE  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY  185 


moved  to  Livorno  and  cut  many  gems,  notably  a  Roman  Consul 
in  plasma  and  a  cameo  head  of  Faustina.  Returning  to  Flor¬ 
ence  in  1752,  he  attained  high  celebrity  under  the  patronage 
of  the  painter,  Ignatius  Hughford,  and  did  a  copy  of  the  Pitti 
Bacchante,  a  female  head  in  jacinth,  a  Phokion,  a  Judgment 
of  Paris,  a  cameo  head  of  Christ,  a  cameo  skull  and  cross-bones 
and  many  other  fine  works. 

Gottfried  Graaft — an  excellent  name  for  the  times — en¬ 
joyed  considerable  reputation  at  Rome  about  1760. 

After  the  death  of  Flavio  Sirletti,  Carlo  Costanzi  succeeded 
to  his  pre-eminence.  He  resided  at  Rome  and  did  a  Leda,  a 
head  of  Antinous  on  diamond  for  the  King  of  Portugal  and 
reproduced  many  antiques,  including  the  Strozzi  Medusa,  sig¬ 
nature  and  all,  on  a  stone  of  the  same  kind,  a  chalcedony,  that 
deceived  the  connoisseurs.  Also  he  left  many  portraits  of  his 
contemporaries:  a  Maria  Theresa  in  sapphire,  a  Cardinal 
Spinola  on  agate-onyx,  a  head  of  the  Pretender  and,  on  an 
emerald  two  inches  across,  a  head  of  Pope  Benedict  XIV  in 
relief  with  those  of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul  on  the  reverse.  There 
is  also  a  Cosimo  III  bearing  his  signature:  CAV.  CAR.  COS¬ 
TANZI. 

His  brother,  Giovanni  Costanzi,  worked  with  him  and  was 
best  known  for  a  head  of  Nero  engraved  on  a  diamond. 

Jean  Lorenz  Natter  of  Biberach,  1705 — 1762,  excelled  his 
predecessors  in  imitations  of  the  antique,  though  his  copies  al¬ 
ways  show  a  difference.  At  the  beginning  of  his  career  he  en¬ 
graved  coats  of  arms  at  Venice;  then,  going  to  Florence,  he 
came  under  the  influence  of  Baron  Stosch  and  supplied  him 
with  many  of  his  “ancient”  masterpieces.  Later,  at  Rome,  he 
worked  with  much  success,  producing,  notably,  a  reduced  copy 
of  the  Julia,  daughter  of  Titus,  by  Evodos  and  a  portrait  of  Car¬ 
dinal  Albani.  Thence  he  went  to  London  where  he  published 
in  1755  a  book  on  antique  gem-engraving.  Several  of  his  signed 
works  reached  the  Marlborough  Cabinet,  together  with  a  number 
of  unsigned  imperial  heads.  From  London  he  journeyed  to 
Persia  and  thence  to  St.  Petersburg.  His  earliest  signature  is 
L.  N.,  his  later,  NATTER  or  its  translation  into  Greek, 


186 


GEMS  OF  MODERN  TIMES 


YAPOY.  Sometimes  lie  signed  with  a  rebus  figure  of  a  ser¬ 
pent.  He  insisted  that  he  never  sold  any  of  his  work  as  antique. 

C.  Brown,  an  English  gem-engraver,  worked  along  the  mid¬ 
dle  of  the  century,  both  in  London  and  Paris,  and  was  noted 
for  intaglio  heads  of  Bacchantes,  figures  of  Cupids  and  por¬ 
traits.  He  also  cut  cameos.  His  signature  was  either  C.  B.  or 
his  name  in  full.  W.  Brown,  his  brother,  was  also  a  fair  artist. 
The  signature,  “Brown,”  found,  sometimes,  on  a  gem,  leaves  it, 
usually,  uncertain  by  which  of  the  two  it  was  done. 

Wray  of  Salisbury,  who  died  in  1770,  engraved  a  few  fine 
intaglios :  The  Dying  Cleopatra,  a  copy  of  the  Strozzi  Medusa,  a 
Magdalene,  a  Flora,  two  Miltons,  one  in  full  face  and  one  in 
profile,  a  Cicero  and  several  others.  He  signs  both  in  English 
and  with  his  name  Hellenized  into  OYPAIOI. 

Louis  Siries,  a  Frenchman,  who  lived  at  Florence,  was  one 
of  the  best  gem-engravers  of  his  time.  His  tendency  was  to 
essay  impossibilities,  often  in  the  line  of  minuteness,  and  St. 
Laurent  says  he  “Dreaded  nothing  so  much  as  the  being  thought 
an  imitator  of  the  ancients.”  Microscopic  cuttings  on  thin 
yellow  sards  let  into  frames  of  white  agate  have  been  left  by 
him ;  also  notable  are  a  Crucifixion  intaglio  in  lapis  lazuli,  a 
relief  entitled  “The  Wonders  of  Nature,  the  Arts  and  Sciences,” 
a  cameo  bust  of  Louis  XV  surrounded  by  the  Zodiac,  facing 
heads  of  Frances  Stephen  and  Maria  Theresa,  Sol  in  his  car  in 
the  Zodiac,  Hercules  and  Antaios,  with  many  others.  King 
does  not  rank  him  very  high  and  calls  his  heads  weak  and  his 
landscapes  mere  scratches.  He  signed  either  L.  S.  or  his 
name  in  full. 

Johann  Pichler,  the  son  of  Anton,  1734 — 1791,  excelled  his 
father  in  his  art  and  seems  to  have  been  the  leading  engraver 
of  his  time.  He  was  born  at  Naples  and  most  of  his  works  are 
intaglios  which  were  often  sold  by  dealers  as  antiques.  To 
prevent  this  he  is  said  to  have  always  added  his  signature, 
TTIXAEP  (PI.  XXXII,  16).  King  says  that  Pichler  told  a 
friend  that,  although  he  had  striven  to  imitate  the  antique,  he 
did  not  consider  his  best  efforts  equal  to  their  mediocre  ones. 
Also  he  tells  the  story  of  a  youth  with  a  hoop  which  he  engraved 


ARTISTS  OF  THE  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY  187 


on  a  brown  sard  and  lost.  Some  weeks  later  Alfani,  a  noted 
antiquarian,  brought  him  the  gem  which  he  had  bought  for 
fifty  zecchins  from  Christiani,  another  connoisseur  who  had  got 
it  from  a  peasant  who  claimed  to  have  dug  it  up  in  his  garden. 
Alfani  asked  Pichler  to  make  a  copy  for  forty  zecchins  and 
then  sold  both  at  Paris  for  a  hundred  louis  each.  The  two 
purchasers,  chancing  to  meet  and  compare  their  gems,  each 
claimed  his  to  be  an  antique  and  the  other’s  a  modern  copy, 
finally  sending  them  to  Pichler  at  Rome  for  his  judgment,  when 
the  fraud  came  out.  It  appears  the  first  gem  had  been  stolen  by  a 
pupil  who  employed  the  peasant  to  pass  it  off  on  Christiani. 
The  whole  narrative  is  an  excellent  commentary  on  the  ways 
of  the  times.  Most  of  Pichler’s  intaglios  are  on  large  stones, 
well  drawn,  not  very  deeply  cut  and  highly  polished.  Busts, 
notably  one  of  Helen,  and  figures  of  Venus  after  the  antique  are 
among  his  best  works.  Kohler  accuses  him,  with  what  justice 
it  is  hard  to  say,  of  having  forged  many  Etruscan  scarabs  and 
of  having  forged  artists’  signatures  on  many  ancient  gems. 

Passaglia,  a  lieutenant  in  the  Papal  guard,  won  very  close 
to  the  antique,  both  in  spirit  and  execution,  though  he  is  said 
to  have  always  signed,  TTAZAAIAI,  for  the  identification  of  his 
work. 

Rega  of  Naples  flourished  at  the  end  of  the  century,  dying 
in  1812.  He,  too,  caught  the  spirit  and  execution  of  the  antique 
much  better  than  had  the  others,  and  his  subjects  seem  all  to 
be  classical  ones.  King  says  that  his  head  of  Pallas  with  a 
hippocamp  finely  cut  on  her  helmet  (PI.  XXXII,  18)  and  his 
Ajax  in  despair,  with  a  recumbent  bull  by  his  side,  might  easily 
mislead  a  connoisseur  but  for  the  signature,  P  E  r  A ,  which  he 
always  used.  I  venture  to  differ  with  Dr.  King. 

Simon,  who  worked  at  Paris,  was  a  great-grandson  of 
Thomas  Simon,  Cromwell’s  engraver  referred  to  above.  Chab- 
ouillet  speaks  of  his  gems  as  “possessing  considerable  merit.” 

Giulianelli  praises  Aaron  Woolf  (L’Ebreo),  who  lived  at 
Livorno  and  at  Siena  in  1752,  and  speaks  of  a  Leda  on  a 
carnelian  and  the  coat  of  arms  of  the  King  of  Naples  on  a 
white  sapphire. 


188 


GEMS  OF  MODERN  TIMES 


La  Chaux  mentions  Michel,  a  pupil  of  Guay’s,  as  an  artist 
of  promise  in  1784. 

Jeuffroy,  of  Paris,  was  much  admired  by  Raspe  for  his 
portrait  of  Mrs.  Cosway,  the  actress,  done  about  1791. 

In  1797  Millin  names  as  gem-engravers  most  in  repute  at 
Rome,  Santarilli,  Masini  and  Capperoni.  He  also  praises  a 
Signora  Talani,  of  Roman  extraction. 

Kohler  has  admired  the  finish  and  delicacy  of  certain 
portrait  cameos  of  the  Russian  imperial  family,  the  work  of  the 
Grand  Duchess,  Maria  Feodorowna. 

Amastini  is  said  by  Nagler  to  have  copied  antique  gems 
at  Rome  during  the  latter  part  of  the  century  and  this  sig¬ 
nature  appears  on  a  cameo  of  Venus  seizing  Cupid  by  the  arm, 
in  the  British  Museum.  King  speaks  of  its  “Berninesque  flight¬ 
iness.” 

R.  A.  Burch,  who  died  in  England  in  1814,  belonged  to  the 
eighteenth  century  school  and  cut  excellent  cameos  and  in¬ 
taglios.  A  St.  George  and  the  Dragon  on  sardonyx  evidences 
his  skill  in  the  former,  and  heads  of  Hercules  and  Ganymede  are 
the  best  known  of  his  intaglios. 

His  pupil,  Marchant,  1755 — 1812,  far  surpassed  him  and 
was  the  best  of  all  the  English  gem-engravers  (PI.  XXXII,  17). 
He  followed  the  antique  style  with  neat  elegance  but  in  a  some¬ 
what  stiff,  academic  spirit.  At  Rome  for  sixteen  years,  he  cut 
modern  portraits,  antique  heads,  figures  and  groups,  all  in¬ 
taglios,  it  is  believed,  and  signed,  MARCHANT  .  ROM2E. 
The  Prince  Regent  and  the  Duke  of  Marlborough  were  both  his 
patrons,  and  his  masterpiece,  Hercules  restoring  Alkestis  to 
Admetos,  was  done  on  commission  from  the  Elector  of  Saxony 
and  given  by  him  to  the  Duke  of  Marlborough.  He  received 
£200  for  a  group  of  two  women,  apparently  portraits,  on  a 
brown  sard. 

Other  names  of  British  artists  of  this  period  are  Band, 
W.  Barnett,  Bemfleet,  Berry,  Bragg,  E.  B.  F.  Burch,  Crane, 
Joseph  Cave,  Deane,  who  left  only  three  angels’  heads,  Fraser, 
Frewin,  Grew,  Harris,  Hill,  J.  Hills,  Holland,  Kirk,  Lane,  Law, 
Logan,  J.  Milton,  Nossop,  Peart,  Pingo,  W.  Pownall,  T.  Pown- 


ARTISTS  OF  THE  NINETEENTH  CENTURY  189 


all,  J.  Smith,  T.  Smith,  Thompson,  Vere,  Warner,  Whitley, 
Wickstead,  Williams,  Wise  and  Yeo. 

What  the  seventeenth  century  had  been  to  the  sixteenth, 
the  nineteenth  was  to  the  eighteenth.  The  traditions  con¬ 
tinued  and,  down  to  1840  or  thereabouts,  the  imitations  of  the 
antique  were  turned  out  in  great  numbers,  becoming  at  once 
more  refined  and  more  affected.  It  was  now  that  they  began 
to  indulge  in  various  tricks  to  give  the  modern  stone  an  an¬ 
tique  look.  Connoisseurship,  though  still  ignorant,  was  becom¬ 
ing  more  suspicious  in  some  directions,  since  the  mass  of 
forgeries  had  at  last  forced  recognition. 

The  discoveries  in  Etruria  in  the  thirties  spurred  the 
forgers  to  efforts  in  that  direction,  as  I  have  said  above,  but 
it  is  not  believed  that  the  best  workmen  gave  much  attention 
to  this  branch  and  the  imitated  scarabs  were  generally  rough 
and  unsuccessful. 

Luigi  Pichler,  a  younger  son  of  Anton,  was  one  of  the  most 
prominent  gem-engravers  and  worked  at-  both  Vienna  and 
Rome,  along  the  lines  of  his  brother,  Johann.  He  carried  tech¬ 
nique  to  a  high  level  and  polished  his  engravings  most  elabor¬ 
ately  (PI.  XXXII,  11,  22).  His  acknowledged  works  are 
signed,  A.niXAEP. 

In  Brussels  several  members  of  the  Simon  family  con¬ 
tinued  to  thrive. 

Perhaps  the  best  and  the  most  spectacularly  known  of  the 
fraternity  was  Benedetto  Pistrucci,  born  at  Rome  in  1784  but 
who  lived  and  worked  in  London  for  forty  years  and  attained 
a  wonderful  measure  of  pecuniary  success.  Dr.  Billing  gives 
the  following  prices  paid  for  some  of  his  reliefs:  a  St.  George 
and  the  Dragon  in  jasper,  afterward  adopted,  with  slight  var¬ 
iations,  as  the  design  on  the  sovereigns  of  George  IV,  100 
guineas;  a  full  face  Medousa  head  in  jasper,  200  guineas;  a  lion, 
bound  with  garlands  by  Venus  and  Cupid  (“Force  subdued  by 
Love”),  200  guineas;  Youthful  Bacchus,  300  guineas;  St.  An¬ 
drew,  350  guineas,  and  Minerva  500  guineas.  He  even  received 
£800  for  a  cameo  showing  heads  of  Augustus  and  Livia  which, 
by  the  way,  brought  £30  at  the  sale  of  the  Herz  Collection  in 


190 


GEMS  OF  MODERN  TIMES 


1859.  His  especial  genius  was  evidenced  in  relief  work  on 
stones  of  one  color,  of  which  his  Trajan  head  in  sapphirine 
chalcedony  is  a  fine  example.  King  knows  of  no  signed  in¬ 
taglio  from  his  hand. 

Pistrucci  tells  in  his  autobiography,  which  brings  his  life 
down  to  1817,  how,  having  repeatedly  found  cameos  of  his, 
which  had  been  roughened  and  steeped  to  give  them  a  patina, 
in  the  hands  of  Roman  dealers  as  veritable  antiques,  he  made 
a  practice  of  placing  his  private  mark,  a  Greek  A,  in  some 
concealed  place  in  the  hair  or  drapery  of  his  heads  and  figures. 

The  story  of  the  “Flora,”  now  in  the  British  Museum,  is 
worth  repeating  here,  both  as  evidence  of  the  general  situation 
and  because  it  was,  doubtless,  one  of  the  incidents  that  paved 
the  way  for  the  collapse  which  the  Poniatowski  gems  precipita¬ 
ted.  Briefly,  the  facts  are  that  when  Pistrucci  was  at  work 
at  the  house  of  Sir  Joseph  Banks,  on  a  model  for  a  portrait 
head,  Mr.  Richard  Payne  Knight,  one  of  the  best  known  an¬ 
tiquaries  and  collectors  of  the  time,  called  and  showed  them 
triumphantly  a  small  head  in  cameo  which  he  held  to  be  a 
veritable  antique  and  for  which  he  had  just  paid  £500  to  the 
dealer,  Bonelli.  The  gem  was  broken  off  from  the  back  of  the 
head  down  to  the  throat  and  the  lower  part  was  lacking.  Pis¬ 
trucci  at  once  announced  that,  six  years  before,  he  himself  had 
executed  the  cameo  as  a  Flora  on  a  stone  of  peculiar  shape 
which  he  had  managed  so  that  it  seemed  to  have  been  broken, 
and  that  he  had  got  £5  from  Bonelli  for  it.  He  further  said 
that  they  would  find  his  private  mark  hidden  in  the  hair  at 
the  top  of  the  head,  unless  Bonelli  had  erased  it.  How  far 
Payne  Knight  yielded  at  the  time  we  have  only  Pistrucci’s 
word  for  and  he  claims  that  he  did  yield,  after  an  angry  dis¬ 
pute.  It  is  certain  that  the  connoisseur  was  touched  at  his 
most  sensitive  point.  He  soon  succeeded,  however,  with  the 
aid  of  Bonelli,  in  reassuring  himself  and  to  the  time  of  his 
death  refused  to  accept  the  gem  as  other  than  antique,  catalog¬ 
ing  it,  finally,  as  a  Proserpina  crowned  with  flowers  and  main¬ 
taining  Pistrucci’s  claim  to  be  an  impudent  attempt  to  prove 
an  unmerited  pre-eminence  for  himself.  Experts  took  sides 


FORGERS  AND  THE  PONIATOWSKI  GEMS  191 


and  the  controversy  waxed  hot,  with  the  inevitable  result  of 
unsettling  the  opinions  of  many  as  to  the  infallibility  of  the 
judgments  they  had  relied  on.  Considering  the  “Flora”  now 
and  in  the  light  of  present  knowledge,  it  is  hard  to  see  how 
it  could  ever  have  been  an  object  of  dispute  among  cognoscenti. 
Whether  Pistrucci  did  it  or  not,  it  is  quite  apparent  that  it  is 
no  work  of  antiquity. 

Prominent  among  the  artists  and  forgers  of  the  early  part 
of  the  nineteenth  century  were  Cerbara  and  Girometti  at  Rome, 
the  former  of  whom  was  famous  for  his  intaglios  and  the  lat: 
ter  for  cameos,  notably  his  Hebe  presenting  nectar  to  Jove, 
done  on  an  oriental  onyx. 

Calandrelli  worked  at  Berlin  and  some  of  his  gems  found 
their  way  into  the  great  Prussian  collection  there  ( PI.  XXXII, 
19),  the  brothers  Tipa  forged  merrily  at  Trapani  in  Sicily, 
but  most  famous,  perhaps,  of  the  Italians  were  the  precious 
quartette,  Ginganelli,  Dies,  Odelli  and  Tomaso  Cades  (PI. 
XXXII,  20),  noted  mainly  as  the  principal  perpetrators  of  the 
Poniatowski  gems.  These  it  was  who  killed  the  goose  that 
had  laid  so  many  golden  eggs,  though  it  can  hardly  be  doubted 
that  the  bird  had  so  conducted  itself  that  its  demise  could  not 
have  been  very  long  delayed. 

Prince  Poniatowski’s  part  in  this  remarkable  performance 
has  never  been  satisfactorily  explained.  He  had  inherited  from 
his  uncle,  Stanislaus,  the  last  king  of  Poland,  a  collection  of 
one  hundred  and  fifty-four  gems,  most  of  them  of  undoubted 
antiquity  and  including  many  of  the  most  important  examples, 
like  the  female  head  by  Dioskourides,  then  held  to  be  an  Io.  To 
these  he  added  nearly  three  thousand  more  which  were  made 
at  his  order  by  the  Roman  gem-cutters,  the  subjects  being  their 
own  or  the  Prince’s  conceptions  of  pictures  from  classic  history 
and  mythology,  done  on  oriental  sards,  amethysts  and  crystals 
of  fine  quality  and,  for  the  most  part,  considerable  size.  There 
is  absolutely  no  suggestion  of  antiquity  in  the  melodramatic 
flamboyancy  of  these  compositions  (PI.  XXXII,  21),  many 
of  them  involving  a  number  of  figures,  and  the  supposition  that 
the  Prince  was  himself  deceived  by  the  artists  is  inconceivable. 


192 


GEMS  OF  MODERN  TIMES 


The  fact  that  he  never  tried  to  sell  any  of  the  gems  would  seem 
to  negative  the  supposition  that  he  himself  sought  to  profit 
by  the  fraud,  and  the  motive  which  King  advances  that,  being 
deeply  interested  in  the  glyptic  art,  he  wished  to  encourage  its 
professors  and  to  prove  them  competent  to  rival  the  ancients 
seems  to  me  to  be  hardly  tenable  in  the  face  of  the  fact  that 
to  Odelli  was  assigned  the  province  of  providing  every  gem 
with  the  forged  signature  of  some  real  or  imaginary  artist  of 
antiquity.  Altogether  the  whole  performance  carries  us  be¬ 
yond  the  realm  of  any  reasonable  line  of  explanation  and  one 
is  driven  to  take  refuge  in  a  suspicion  that  Prince  Poniatowski 
had  simply  become  an  unbalanced  monomaniac  on  the  subject. 
He  died  at  Florence  in  1833,  and  the  collection  was  sold  in 
London  in  1839,  when  such  was  the  effect  of  the  scandal  that 
even  the  wonderful  “Io,”  discredited  by  the  bad  company  into 
which  she  had  fallen,  was  knocked  down  for  £17.  A  few  years 
before  £1000  would  have  been  a  low  price  for  her. 

To  show  the  condition  that  resulted,  some  hundred  and 
fifty  of  the  Poniatowski  gems  that  were  put  up  in  London  in 
1854  could  not  get  bids  of  over  25s  to  30s,  in  spite  of  which — 
and  this  is,  perhaps,  the  most  remarkable  feature  of  the  whole 
affair — certain  persons,  in  1858,  issued  an  elaborate  work 
maintaining  in  all  seriousness  the  antiquity  of  these  discred¬ 
ited  forgeries  and  the  genuineness  of  their  utterly  absurd  at¬ 
tributions.  They  are  now  scattered  all  over  Europe  and,  sev¬ 
eral  years  ago,  about  a  hundred  of  them  were  presented  by 
the  late  Mr.  E.  McK.  Holly,  together  with  a  large  collection  of 
other  gems,  to  the  New  York  Charity  Organization  Society  to 
be  disposed  of  for  its  benefit.  These  were  placed  on  sale  at 
Tiffany  and  Co.’s  at  prices  ranging  from  $90  to  $150.  Prob¬ 
ably  some  were  sold  but  many  still  remain  at  the  Organization 
rooms  in  New  York  City  and  whoever  desires  a  Poniatowski 
gem  can  secure  one  there.  As  pretty  work,  characteristic  of 
their  period,  they  have  a  certain  value;  as  monuments  in  the 
history  of  forgery  they  have  another,  but  the  combination  is 
not  over-attractive. 

Enough  has  been  said  to  point  out  the  causes  which  led 


DECLINE  OF  THE  ART 


193 


to  the  general  loss  of  interest  in  engraved  gems  as  subjects  of 
connoisseurship  and  objects  of  the  collector’s  desire.  The  ef¬ 
fect  on  the  prices  obtainable  for  them  was  equally  inevitable. 
From  sums  that  ranged  to  $5000  and  more,  the  sale  of  the 
“Io”  of  Dioskourides  for  £17,  of  Pistrucci’s  cameo  of  Augustus 
and  Livia,  for  which  he  received  £800,  for  £30  and  of  number¬ 
less  ordinary  specimens  for  next  to  nothing  tell  the  story. 
Thus,  with  the  uncertainty  as  to  and  loss  of  interest  in  the 
antique,  the  taste  for  and  values  of  contemporary  work  suf¬ 
fered  a  like  collapse.  Clever  craftsmen  could  no  longer  get 
any  but  the  most  paltry  prices  for  either  their  forgeries  or 
their  acknowledged  art,  and  hence  there  soon  ceased  to  be 
either  clever  forgers  or  artists. 

A  few  pretty  good  workmen  struggled  on  after  1850:  the 
two  daughters  of  Pistrucci,  Elena  and  Elisa,  at  Rome,  Bassi 
at  Florence,  Paul  Lebas  and  Luigi  Isler  at  Paris,  Brett  and, 
later,  Renton  in  England.  Soon,  however,  even  such  excellence 
as  was  theirs  faded  and,  today,  in  Europe  and  America  little 
is  done  that  is  above  contempt.  The  more  important  jewelers 
usually  have  someone  in  their  employ  or  at  hand  who  can  cut 
a  respectable  coat  of  arms  for  a  seal,  which  is  about  all  the 
demand  calls  for.  An  exception  is  Ottavio  Negri,  formerly  of 
Rome,  but  now  located  in  New  York,  who  is  capable  of  excellent 
work  (PI.  XXXII,  9),  were  the  demand  for  it  greater.  His 
classical  heads,  some  done  on  moon-stones,  are  charming  and  I 
have  seen  a  plaque  of  his  in  rock-crystal  of  swans,  in  which  the 
reflection  of  the  birds  in  the  water  is  very  cleverly  effected  by 
means  of  shallow  intaglios  of  them  on  the  back  of  the  stone. 
Such  ancient  subjects  as  he  does  are  not  in  the  nature  of 
forgeries. 

In  Paris,  too,  there  have  been  of  late  several  gem-engravers 
whose  work  is  well  spoken  of,  though  I  am  not  personally  fam¬ 
iliar  with  it:  Lefevre,  recently  deceased,  and  Lechevrelle  who 
is  still  living;  and  it  is  possible  that,  at  the  other  European 
centres,  there  may  be  workmen  of  more  or  less  ability  whose 
names  are,  owing  to  the  meagre  demand,  known  only  to  small 
circles. 


i 


194 


GEMS  OF  MODERN  TIMES 


In  the  East  it  seems  to  be  rather  different.  Though  the 
signets  of  the  Turks  are  usually  cut  in  metal,  the  wealthy  still 
use  a  ring-stone,  and  the  skill  necessary  to  cut  the  graceful  lines 
of  their  script  (PI.  XXXII,  1)  is  available  for  disreputable 
purposes  (PL  XXXII,  8).  Count  Michael  Tyszkiewicz  in  his 
Memories  of  an  Old  Collector  tells  of  a  lot  of  ancient  unen¬ 
graved  scarabs,  mostly  chalcedony,  that  were  found  in  Cyprus 
and  promptly  bought  by  some  dealers  who  had  them  engraved 
by  a  clever  workman  with  a  skill  amply  calculated  to  deceive 
even  the  reasonably  wary  and  scattered  them  over  Europe. 
Less  successful  attempts  on  modern  scarabs  were  also  put  forth 
even  in  Tyszkiewicz’s  time  and,  with  the  new  discoveries  of 
Mycensean  and  archaic  Greek  art,  the  awakened  interest  and 
the  fair  prices,  it  was  quite  natural  to  expect  the  revival  of 
forgery  in  that  line  referred  to  by  Furtwangler  and  to  which 
I  have  already  alluded. 

I  know  of  but  one  forger  in  Constantinople,  a  Greek,  who 
is  reputed  to  make  occasional  trips  to  Asia  Minor  where,  in 
exchange  for  genuine  finds,  he  distributes  his  work  among  the 
peasants  who  bury  it  to  be  dug  up  for  the  delectation  of  mis¬ 
sionaries  and  tourists.  Also  there  is  a  small  factory  at  Pan¬ 
derma  on  the  other  side  of  the  Bosphorus,  and,  at  Tyre,  a  Syrian, 
Najib  Saadi,  has  during  the  last  three  years  made  copies  of  a 
few  ancient  intaglios  that  must  be  scrutinized  rather  closely 
to  fix  their  provenance,  but  the  only  establishment  of  any  size 
in  Northern  Asia  Minor  is  that  of  a  Turk  at  Caesarea.  He  has 
in  his  employ  several  Greeks  and  Armenians  who  turn  out 
gems,  cameos  and  coins  which  go,  for  the  most  part,  to  Smyrna 
for  marketing. 

In  Italy,  and,  more  especially  at  Rome,  are  still  cut  a  large 
number  of  intaglios  in  stone.  Most  of  these,  while  copies  of 
antique  designs,  many  of  them  on  gems  artificially  colored  in 
Germany,  are  evidently  not  intended  to  be  sold  as  forgeries  and 
those  that  are,  whether  Etruscan  scarabs  or  imitations  of 
Roman  gems  of  the  Empire,  can  deceive  only  the  ignorant 
tourist  for  whose  custom  they  are  primarily  intended.  Dealers 
at  Rome  tell  you  the  work  is  done  at  Naples  and  Neapolitan 


GEM-ENGRAVERS  OF  TODAY 


195 


dealers  say,  Rome,  but  I  found  no  evidence  of  any  manufacture 
to  speak  of  at  the  former  place.  Enrico  Girardet  at  Rome  is 
probably  about  the  best  of  the  present  day  Italian  gem-en¬ 
gravers  and  admits  that  examples  of  his  work  have  been  sold 
as  antiques.  That  he  made  them  as  forgeries,  however,  he 
denies  and  I  do  not  doubt  his  truthfulness.  He  does  little  now 
in  the  way  of  intaglios.  Gaetano  Trabacchi  works,  I  believe 
entirely  honestly,  for  Augusto  Castellani,  one  of  the  most 
reputable  of  the  Roman  dealers  in  antiquities  and  facsimiles  of 
ancient  jewelry;  Francesco  Ciapponi  cuts  some  cameos;  An¬ 
tonio  and  Virginio  Lanzi  (PI.  XXXII,  4,  5,  14?)  and  Ma¬ 
riano  Macceroni  (PI.  XXXII,  2,  3)  still  work  at  intaglios  from 
ancient  designs  and  in  quite  similar  styles,  copying,  for  the 
most  part,  the  “pretty”  subjects  among  the  Cades  series  of 
casts.  The  first  named,  now  an  old  man,  has  done  some  fairly 
good  work  in  his  day,  at  least  in  the  matter  of  details.  Each 
of  these  gem-engravers  suggests  one  or  more  of  his  confreres 
as  the  source  of  the  modern  Roman  fakes  but  the  truth  is  not 
especially  important.  I  was  assured  of  the  antiquity  of  a 
number  of  obvious  forgeries  at  the  shop  of  Giovanni  Lanzi,  a 
relative  of  Antonio  and  Virginio,  and  he  recommended  me  to 
a  certain  shop  on  the  Via  Bonella,  which  I  found  well  stocked 
with  goods  of  the  same  kind.  I  have  also  seen  many  of  these 
that  were  said  to  have  been  found  at  Ostia,  the  active  excava¬ 
tions  at  which  place  having  doubtless  substituted  it  for  the  pop¬ 
ular  Pompeii  provenance  of  fifty  years  ago  as  a  pretended 
source.  As  for  Ciapponi,  his  partner  innocently  tried  to  sell 
me  as  an  antique  a  gem  which  the  more  honest  engraver  had 
told  me  a  few  minutes  before  was  his  own  work.  A  glance, 
however,  at  the  character  of  the  output  of  these  men  is  quite 
sufficient  to  guard  one  against  the  possibility  of  deception. 

Incidentally,  a  word  may  be  said  here  about  the  Cades 
casts,  the  models  from  which  forgeries  have  long  been  done 
on  the  lines  I  have  suggested.  There  are  about  six  thousand 
five  hundred  of  them,  apart  from  the  Egyptian  scarabs  and 
those  catalogued  as  Cinque-Cento  or  modern,  and  it  is  interest- 


196 


GEMS  OF  MODERN  TIMES 


ing  to  note  that  nearly  two  thousand  of  these  are  either  pic¬ 
tures  from  the  Erotic  and  Bacchic  cycles  or  portrait  heads. 

With  these  remarks  I  may  close  the  portion  of  this  book 
which  traces  the  history  and  phases  of  the  development  of 
gem-engraving  in  intaglio.  It  does  not  pretend  to  be  either 
exhaustive  or  exclusive.  Such  a  work  would  mean  substitu¬ 
ting  at  least  a  volume  for  each  chapter.  The  attempt  has  been 
to  give  here  a  good  general  view  of  the  tendencies  and  manifes¬ 
tations  of  each  epoch  in  a  systematic  way  and  with  enough 
typical  examples  to  enable  the  student  or  connoisseur  to  place 
specimens  accurately  and  detect  the  incongruities  that  spell 
hostility  to  the  thought,  spirit,  technique  or  material  of  each 
period  and  art  source. 


PART  II 


THE  DEITIES  AND  OTHER  PERSONAGES  COMMON  OR 
LIABLE  TO  BE  FOUND  ON  ENGRAVED  GEMS,  WITH 
THEIR  APPEARANCE,  ATTRIBUTES,  ETC. 


CHAPTER  I 

THE  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 
ZEUS— JUPITER 

(PL  XV,  15;  XVI,  12;  XXI,  16,  17;  XXII,  9;  XXIII,  11—13,  19;  XXVIII,  21) 

“The  Father  of  Gods  and  Men”  was,  naturally,  one  of  the 
most  common  of  the  deities  engraved  on  gems.  He  is  most 
often  represented  after  the  Pheidian  epoch  as  the  enthroned 
Zeus  of  Olympia  with  the  lower  part  of  his  body  draped  and 
his  head  crowned  with  a  wreath  of  olive.  The  standing  Zeus, 
either  nude  or  with  only  a  mantle  over  his  arm  or  shoulders, 
is  also  frequent.  His  body  is  powerful  but  not  over-muscular, 
and  his  hair,  in  later  art,  when  treated  specifically,  is  generally 
piled  up  on  his  head.  The  face,  full-bearded,  save  rarely  in 
early  Greek  or  Italian  art,  is  serene  and  full  of  kindly  dignity, 
but  these  finer  points  are,  of  course,  only  noticeable  on  gems 
of  finished  excellence.  Rarely  he  is  shown,  either  on  foot  or 
in  a  chariot,  contending  with  Earth-giants. 

Primarily  a  sky-god,  his  usual  attributes  are  the  eagle  and 
the  thunderbolt,  or,  as  ruler  of  Olympos,  he  holds  a  sceptre,  and, 
as  the  victorious  Zeus  Nikephoros,  a  figure  of  Victory.  The 
patera  or  sacrificial  dish  is  also  a  not  uncommon  attribute.  As 
Zeus  Orkios,  the  avenger  of  broken  oaths,  his  aspect  is  terrible 
and  he  hurls  a  thunderbolt,  sometimes  holding  one  in  each 
hand.  Rarely  he  is  shown  in  other  arts  as  a  child  with  the 
she-goat  Amaltheia  or  with  the  Kouretes  around  him.  I  know 
of  no  such  representation  on  a  gem,  but  it  is  a  possibility  to  be 
looked  for. 

He  is  often  pictured  under  his  metamorphoses :  as  the  bull 
with  Europe,  the  swan  with  Leda,  the  satyr  with  Antiope  and 
the  eagle  with  Ganymedes  ( PI.  IV,  8 ;  X,  6 ;  XIX,  13  ? ;  XXVI, 17 ) . 

Many  variant  cults  of  Zeus  existed  from  early  times  in 
different  cities  of  the  Hellenic  world.  Gems  of  these  periods 

199 


200  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


are  very  rare,  and  at  the  periods  when  the  great  mass  of  our 
examples  must  be  dated,  the  unifying  sway  of  the  Roman  world- 
power  had  pretty  thoroughly  conventionalized  the  two  types 
first  described.  A  few  words,  however,  about  such  of  the  local 
cults  as  suggest  special  features  might  guide  some  fortunate 
student  in  the  interpretation  of  an  early  gem  otherwise  a 
puzzle,  especially  if  he  were  lucky  enough  to  be  able  to  fix  its 
provenance. 

Zeus  Endendros  (living  in  the  tree)  was  worshipped  at 
Dodona.  In  statues  of  the  Dodonan  Zeus  the  Olympian  olive 
wreath  is  replaced  by  one  of  oak  leaves. 

Zeus  Lykeios  was  worshipped  in  Arkadia,  and  there  is  ev¬ 
idence  that,  at  an  early  time,  children  were  offered  up  to  him. 
The  cult  there  seems  to  have  involved  something  of  the  wolf- 
transformation  superstitions  that  have  survived  in  parts  of 
Europe  almost  if  not  quite  to  the  present  time.  It  would  be 
very  interesting  and  pertinent  to  find  the  god  figured  with  a 
wolf  on  an  early  Greek  gem. 

Zeus  Apomyios  (averter  of  flies)  had  his  seat  in  Elis. 

Several  of  the  cult  titles  seem  to  indicate  an  early  infringe¬ 
ment  upon  what,  later,  became  the  province  of  Poseidon.  Zeus 
Apobateros  (protector  of  landings),  Zeus  Ourios  or  Euenemos 
(of  fair  winds)  and  Zeus  Enalios  (of  the  sea)  were  undoubt¬ 
edly  sailors’  gods,  while  in  Karia  there  was  the  cult  of  a  Zeno- 
Poseidon,  a  composite  deity. 

At  certain  points,  too,  there  was  more  or  less  early  con¬ 
fusion  of  his  personality  or  combination  of  his  worship  with 
those  of  both  Apollo  and  Dionysos. 

Though  generally  and,  at  last,  exclusively  a  sky-god,  there 
is  no  doubt  as  to  his  early  worship  at  Athens  as  Zeus  Georgos 
(the  ground  tiller),  a  god  of  crops,  and  in  Phrygia  as  Zeus 
Karpodotes  (giver  of  fruit).  Thence,  and  by  a  natural  gra¬ 
dation,  we  find  at  Korinth  the  worship  of  Zeus  Chthonios  (of  the 
Under- world) — a  far  cry  from  the  god  of  the  eagle.  Wheat- 
ears,  fruits,  and  even  the  Chthonian  serpent  may  some  day  be 
found  with  a  representation  of  one  of  these  local  types. 

Under  many  titles  and  in  many  places  Zeus  appears  as  a 


ZEUS 


201 


god  of  the  family,  protector  of  paternal  rights  and  of  hospital¬ 
ity,  a  god  of  the  State,  of  its  assemblies,  its  armies  or  its  col¬ 
onies,  but  it  is  not  probable  that  any  of  these  would  present 
novel  attributes,  unless  the  ox  eating  wheat  or  barley  on  the 
altar  of  Zeus  Polios  before  being  sacrificed  might  furnish  a 
theme  or  the  Zeus  Chrysaor  (of  the  golden  sword),  found  on 
the  Asiatic  mainland  in  such  semi-Hellenic  regions  as  Karia 
and  Bithynia.  More  promising  are  the  wealth-giving  types 
which  seem  to  infringe  upon  the  province  of  Plouto:  Zeus 
Kteseos  (giver  of  wealth)  at  Athens,  Zeus  Plousios  (the 
wealthy)  at  Sparta,  and  Zeus  Olbios  (blessed  in  worldly  goods) 
in  Cilicia. 

It  was,  however,  the  worship  of  the  Olympian  Zeus  that 
spread  from  Olympia,  Athens,  Sparta,  Korinth,  Megara,  Chal- 
kis,  Miletos  and  Syracuse,  over  all  the  Hellenic  and,  finally,  on 
his  identification  with  the  Roman  Jupiter,  over  all  the  Roman 
World.  Only  the  standing  type,  perhaps  suggesting  Jupiter 
Stator  (the  stayer  of  flight),  contended  with  it  in  popularity. 

At  Anxur  was  a  cult  of  the  Beardless  Jupiter — the  boy 
god,  son  of  Saturn. 

Here,  also,  it  is  well  to  consider  two  developments  of 
Jupiter.  The  most  important  of  these  was  his  later  identifica¬ 
tion  with  the  Ptolemaic-Alexandrian  Serapis,  god  of  the  dead 
and  of  the  Under- world.  This  movement,  rather  an  absorp¬ 
tion  by  an  occidentalized  Serapis  of  Jupiter,  Plouto,  Helios, 
Aesculapius  and  other  deities,  was  of  a  piece  with  the  whole¬ 
sale  Hadrianic  importation  of  Egyptian  deities  into  the  Roman 
religion  by  which  what  was  already  a  tendency  became  a  re¬ 
ligious  fad.  Representations  of  Jupiter  Serapis  are  very  com¬ 
mon  and  date,  for  the  most  part,  from  Hadrian’s  time  or  later. 
They  are  distinguished  by  the  attribute  of  the  modius  or  corn- 
measure  on  his  head,  a  symbol  of  the  lower  world  where  the 
seed  dies  and  whence  it  springs  forth  to  new  life.  Not  in¬ 
frequently,  too,  the  head  is  crowned  with  rays.  The  figure  of 
a  foot,  sacred  to  the  Alexandrian  cult  of  Serapis  and  rather 
rarely  found  on  Roman  gems,  may  be  placed  as  an  attribute 
symbolizing  Jupiter  Serapis. 


202  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


Much  rarer,  because  it  never  became  an  imperially  favored 
fashion,  is  the  Jupiter  Ammon  type.  In  Greece,  from  ancient 
times,  a  connection  existed  between  the  Zeus  of  Dodona  and  the 
Ammon  of  Upper  Egypt,  and  they  were  held  to  be  the  same  god. 
In  Hellenistic  and  Roman  art  Jupiter  Ammon  is  to  be  distin¬ 
guished  by  the  ram’s  horn  sprouting  from  his  head. 

The  Baal  of  Doliche,  with  his  bull  and  double  ax,  was  wor¬ 
shipped  by  the  Imperial  armies  as  Jupiter  Dolichenus. 

HERA— JUNO 

Representations  of  Hera  or  Juno  are  comparatively  rare 
on  gems.  In  very  early  times  she  was  worshipped  as  an  Earth- 
goddess,  especially  through  Peloponnesos,  and  her  place  as  the 
wife  of  Zeus  seems  to  have  been  though  an  early  yet  somewhat 
a  later  development  in  the  sense  of  its  general  acceptance.  In 
Argos  and  Euboia  was  the  cult  of  Hera  Zeuxidia  (of  the  yok¬ 
ing),  and  wheat-ears  were  called  the  flowers  of  Hera.  Also 
there  was  the  cult  of  Hera  Antheia  (of  flowers).  The  pre- 
Dorian  Hera  Telchinia  (working  in  metals)  at  Rhodes  was  a 
distinct  and  probably  non-Hellenic  cult. 

With  her  final  placing  in  the  Greek  theogeny  we  find  her 
pre-eminently  a  goddess  of  women,  protectress  of  both  maiden¬ 
hood  and  marriage  and  giver  of  issue,  doubtless  as  a  develop¬ 
ment  from  her  presidence  over  the  fruitfulness  of  the  soil. 

Her  type  statue  of  later  times,  the  work  of  Polycleitos,  was 
at  Argos  and  represented  her  robed  and  enthroned,  crowned 
with  the  Stephanos  or  forehead  diadem  and  holding  a  pome¬ 
granate  and  a  sceptre  tipped  with  a  cuckoo  as  the  harbinger 
of  spring.  Besides  these  her  attributes  were  the  veiled  head, 
as  a  marriage  divinity,  the  goose  of  Juno  Regina  of  the  Cap¬ 
itol,  the  goat  of  Juno  Caprotina,  also  an  early  Roman  cult, 
the  crow  of  Juno  Sospita  of  Lanuvium,  and  the  flower  in  the 
hand  of  Juno  Lucina  of  the  Roman  Matronalia.  Like  most 
gods  and  goddesses  she  often  holds  a  sacrificial  patera.  The 
sceptre  is  not  found  as  an  attribute  prior  to  the  fifth  century 
and  the  peacock,  perhaps  the  most  common  of  all,  was  much 


HERA,  POSEIDON 


203 


later  and  would  never  be  found  on  a  genuine  scarab  or  scar- 
aboid.  She  is  always  pictured  fully  draped.  In  mythology  her 
attendants  were  Iris,  goddess  of  the  rainbow,  and  the  Horai 
or  Seasons,  the  latter  as  on  an  Earth-goddess,  as  may  also  be 
the  significance  of  the  rare  attendance  of  a  seiren  as  a  sepul¬ 
chral  figure. 

From  these  it  follows  that  representations  of  Hera  are  not 
always  the  easiest  to  identify,  especially  on  cheap  work.  Most 
of  her  attributes  are  common  to  many  other  goddesses,  like 
the  sceptre  and  Stephanos,  while  Aphrodite,  Demeter  and  Per¬ 
sephone  all  have  the  pomegranate. 

In  very  few  of  her  cults  was  she  regarded  a  war-goddess, 
though  the  Hera  Prodroma  (running  forward)  of  Sikyon  and 
the  Hera  Areia  (Marslike)  of  Paestum  seem  to  have  been  of 
that  character,  as  were  also  the  Juno  Curites  of  the  Sabines, 
with  her  spear,  and  the  Juno  Sospita  (the  savior)  of  Lanuvium, 
where  her  statue  represented  her  with  a  goatskin  over  her 
matron’s  robe  and  a  shield  and  brandished  spear. 

After  the  Third  Punic  War  the  ancient  tutelary  goddess 
of  Carthage,  Astarte,  was  brought  to  Rome,  where  she  was 
reverenced  under  the  name  of  Juno  Ccelestis,  and  when,  under 
the  Empire,  Carthage  became  once  more  a  city,  the  cult  was 
very  flourishing.  She  is  represented  on  a  late  gem  riding  on 
a  lion.  Juno  Moneta  (the  admonisher)  of  the  Capitol  in  whose 
temple  money,  thence  named,  was  coined  had  as  attribute  a 
balance. 

POSEIDON— NEPTUNE 
(PI.  XIX,  16;  XXIII,  20;  XXIV,  5,  22) 

Poseidon  was  especially  a  deity  of  the  Ionian  race  and 
appears  quite  frequently  on  gems.  His  figure  as  shown  is  not 
unlike  that  of  Zeus,  with  the  face  almost  always  bearded.  The 
representations  with  tumbled  beard  and  hair  are  not  found 
until  after  Pheidias’  time,  and  his  statue  type,  holding  the 
trident  and  a  dolphin,  and  with  one  foot  on  a  rock  or  a  ship’s 
prow,  is  probably  derived  from  a  statue  at  Korinth,  the  work 


204  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


of  Lysippos.  Occasionally  draped  in  earlier  times,  he  is  often 
then  and  always  later  shown  nude  or  with  merely  a  scarf  over 
his  arm  or  shoulder. 

At  first  he  was  undoubtedly  a  fresh-water  god  and,  hence, 
a  patron  of  vegetation,  but  when  men  essayed  to  conquer  the 
sea  his  province  was  transferred  and  he  became  the  patron 
deity  of  mariners  and  fishermen. 

The  bull  and  horse  were  sacred  to  him  and  he  is  often 
pictured  borne  over  the  sea  in  a  chariot  drawn  by  horses  or 
hippokamps,  half  horse,  half  fish.  Occasionally  his  wife,  Am- 
phitrite,  is  shown  with  him  or  the  fountain-nvmph,  Amymone. 

Besides  the  usual  attributes  of  the  dolphin  and  trident, 
there  is  also  the  tunny-fish  and,  rarely,  the  pine  wreath.  Very 
rare  symbols  but  dating  from  the  earliest  times  are  a  bough, 
a  bunch  of  grapes,  a  ploughshare,  and  even  a  thunderbolt,  but 
I  have  never  seen  a  gem  bearing  any  of  these. 

TRITONS 

(PI.  V,  18;  IX,  5;  XIII,  6?;  XXII,  10;  XXIV,  22;  XXVI,  3) 

These  were  later  emanations  of  Triton,  son  of  Poseidon 
and  Amphitrite,  whose  home  was  Lake  Tritonis  in  Libya.  They 
are  shown  with  men’s  bodies  and  fishes’  tails.  In  still  later  art 
they  occasionally  have  horses’  forefeet,  as  being  half  triton, 
half  hippokamp.  Their  usual  attribute  is  some  form  of  conch 
shell  which  they  blow  as  a  trumpet  or  hold.  They  also  some¬ 
times  carry  tridents. 

HADES— PLQUTO— ORCUS— DIS 
(PI.  VII,  16) 

This  is  one  of  the  rarest  figures  found  on  gems,  partly,  no 
doubt,  on  account  of  his  gloomy  associations,  though  the  Greek 
Plouto  and  the  Roman  Dis  as  gods  of  wealth  might  have  been 
supposed  at  least  to  soften  the  idea.  Still,  this  province  of 
the  god  was  only  derived  from  his  Chthonian  sway,  and  a 


HADES,  DEMETER 


205 


deity  inexorable,  inaccessible  to  prayers  and  sacrifices  was  not 
one  whose  influence  was  likely  to  be  invoked  on  signets. 

He  is  shown  sometimes  enthroned  and  always  draped,  and 
the  three-headed  dog,  Kerberos,  is  his  attendant.  Occasionally 
his  wife,  Persephone,  is  pictured  with  him,  and  on  one  gem 
he  is  seizing  her  in  the  meadows  of  Enna  to  bear  her  away.  His 
hair  generally  hangs  low  on  his  forehead. 

The  vase  painters  have  tried  to  picture  him  under  the 
milder  aspect  of  a  beneficent  Earth-god,  with  kalathos,  fruit, 
a  cornucopia  or  a  two-pronged  pick-axe,  but  vases  had  not  be¬ 
hind  them  the  talismanic  idea.  I  know  of  no  gem  which  shows 
the  eagle,  sometimes  found  on  his  sceptre  in  sculpture  and 
which  seems  to  suggest  that  he  was  originally  evolved  from 
Zeus.  Another  attribute  is  the  key.  The  cypress  and  the  nar¬ 
cissus  were  his  sacred  tree  and  flower,  and  in  the  rare  sacri¬ 
fices  offered  him  on  exceptional  occasions  black  sheep  were 
used. 

With  the  Etruscans,  who  seem  to  have  had  a  taste  for  hor¬ 
rors,  his  figure  may  have  been  pictured  for  the  mere  horror’s 
sake.  They  sometimes  showed  him  with  a  dog  or  wolf  muzzle 
head-dress  and  a  spear  entwined  with  serpents. 

With  the  introduction  of  the  Serapis  worship  in  Rome  and 
its  wide-spreading  absorptions  of  native  divinities,  Hades,  as 
might  be  expected,  was  one  of  those  most  readily  assimilated. 
Thence  we  find  the  former  assuming  many  of  the  latter’s  at¬ 
tributes  as  a  sort  of  Hades-Serapis.  No  foreign  infusion,  how¬ 
ever,  could  avail  to  make  him  a  popular  god. 

DEMETER— CERES 
(PI.  XXIII,  2) 

Demeter,  the  Earth-mother,  the  Corn-mother,  is  a  not 
especially  uncommon  figure  on  gems,  especially  in  her  later 
conventionalized  forms.  Matronly,  enthroned  or  standing, 
fully  draped  and  hooded  or  with  her  head  crowned  with  wheat- 
ears  and  leaves  or,  sometimes,  with  a  Stephanos,  she  holds  in 
her  hands  wheat-ears,  a  cornucopia,  torches  (wherewith  she 


206  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


sought  Persephone,  her  ravished  daughter),  poppies  or  a  kal- 
athos  (fruit  basket).  The  pomegranate  is  also  one  of  her  at¬ 
tributes  and  she  may,  perhaps,  be  found  holding  the  mystic 
casket  containing  the  arcana  sacra  of  the  lower  world.  Cattle 
and  swine  were  sacrificed  to  her,  and  the  latter,  together  with 
the  serpent,  were  natural  attributes  of  a  goddess  so  distinctly 
Chthonian, — in  a  greater  degree,  even,  than  were  all  the  corn- 
gods  of  the  early  cults.  The  ant,  too,  was  her  sacred  insect. 

A  very  ancient  cult  of  Demeter  had  its  seat  in  Arkadia. 
There  the  goddess  was  worshipped  in  the  guise  of  a  figure  with 
a  horse’s  head,  surrounded  by  serpents  and  holding  a  dove  in 
one  hand  and  a  dolphin  in  the  other.  This,  probably,  either 
grew  out  of  or  gave  rise  to  the  legend  of  the  steed,  Areion, 
which  sprang  from  Poseidon’s  intercourse  with  her  under  the 
form  of  a  mare. 

Sometimes  she  is  pictured  with  Persephone  or  with  Trip- 
tolemos,  their  agent,  and  in  view  of  this  it  may  be  well  to  con¬ 
sider  these  divinities  here. 

PERSEPHONE— KORE— PROSERPINA 
(PI.  VII,  16) 

Originally  a  dualization  of  Demeter,  the  corn-maiden  who 
rises  from  the  ground  with  the  grain,  the  goddess  of  young 
vegetation  in  even  early  theogonies,  Proserpina  was  con¬ 
sidered  her  daughter  and  the  wife  of  Plouto  who  ravished  her 
away  while  gathering  flowers  in  the  meadows  of  Enna  in  cen¬ 
tral  Sicily.  Rare  on  gems,  she  usually  is  found  either  with  her 
mother,  to  whom  she  may  be  pouring  a  libation,  or  enthroned 
with  or  being  carried  off  by  Plouto.  In  the  former  of  these 
last  two  pictures  she  naturally  wears  the  stephanos  and  holds 
a  sceptre.  Always  robed,  her  attributes  are  the  pomegranate, 
key,  mystic  casket,  cornucopia,  ears  of  wheat,  torch,  cup,  and 
cock.  When  figured  alone,  as  a  beautiful  maiden,  she  is  not 
always  easy  to  identify.  A  pig  standing  on  a  bundle  of  myrtle 
twigs  has  been  supposed  to  symbolize  her  Chthonian  power. 


TRIPTOLEMOS,  HESTIA,  APOLLO  207 

TRIPTOLEMOS — DEMOPHOON — BONUS  EVENTUS 
(PI.  XXIV,  20,  21) 

Triptolemos,  the  favorite  of  Demeter,  the  Bonus  Eventus 
of  the  Romans,  is  a  rather  common  gem  subject,  especially 
throughout  the  times  of  the  Empire,  in  his  last  named  person¬ 
ification  of  good  fortune.  Earlier  pictures  show  him  as  a  man, 
bearded  or  smooth-faced,  undraped  or  with  only  a  mantle,  in¬ 
voking  the  half  figure  of  a  girl  (Persephone)  that  is  springing 
up  from  the  ground  together  with  stalks  of  grain.  He  is  also 
represented  in  Greek  art  in  a  winged  chariot  or  in  one  drawn 
by  serpents,  though  I  have  never  seen  a  gem  with  this  picture. 
On  Roman  gems  Bonus  Eventus  is  shown  as  a  naked  youth  or, 
rarely,  with  a  mantle,  unbearded  and,  usually,  with  a  patera 
in  one  hand  and  wheat-ear  in  the  other.  Sometimes  he  holds 
a  poppy  or  a  cornucopia. 

HESTIA— VESTA 

I  know  of  but  a  single  authenticated  gem  representation  of 
this  goddess  so  important  as  the  guardian  of  the  hearth  both  in 
Greece  and  Rome.  Possibly  the  difficulty  of  identification  may 
be  responsible,  in  some  measure,  for  this  lack,  for  there  is 
nothing  especially  distinctive  about  her  figure  or  her  attributes. 
Statues  represent  her  standing  or  enthroned,  matronly  in  form, 
pose,  and  costume,  despite  her  virginity.  Her  head  is  always 
covered  with  a  hood  or  veil  and  her  attributes  are  the  sceptre, 
torch,  patera  and  Palladium.  In  the  gem  in  the  Berlin  Museum 
she  is  shown  with  an  ass  on  each  side. 

APOLLO 

(PI.  IV,  24;  V,  15?;  X,  15c;  XIV,  5,  8;  XX,  3;  XXI,  14; 

XXII,  4;  XXIII,  3,  4;  XXIV,  13) 

Representations  of  Apollo,  the  most  brilliant  creation  of 
Greek  religious  thought,  while  rather  rare  on  later  and  poorer 
gems,  were  naturally  a  favorite  subject  of  the  best  periods  and 
the  best  artists. 


208  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


In  a  few  early  cults,  as  at  Amyklai,  he  was  bearded,  but 
early  in  the  sixth  century  B.  C.  the  beardless  Apollo  bad  be¬ 
come  the  recognized  type.  At  the  beginning  of  the  third  cen¬ 
tury  B.  C.  the  effeminate  representations  of  him  came  into 
vogue.  More  commonly  he  is  nude  or  with  only  a  cloak  or 
scarf  but  the  Apollo  Kitbaraoidos  always  wears  a  long  flowing 
robe,  and  many  other  pictures  of  him  with  a  lyre  and  with 
the  lower  part  of  his  body  draped  are  evidently  inspired  by 
some  recognized  statue  type. 

His  attributes  are  many,  most  conventionally  the  lyre, 
bow  and  arrow,  tripod,  and  laurel  branch;  less  commonly  the 
palm  and,  rarely  in  varying  degrees,  the  dolphin,  swan,  hawk, 
crow,  raven,  snake,  wolf  and  wild  goat,  the  mouse,  as  figured 
beneath  the  foot  of  the  Sminthian  Apollo  of  Skopas,  and  the 
deer  (a  not  very  rare  Etruscan  attribute)  which  appears  with 
him  in  the  statue  by  Kanachos.  The  column,  too,  seems  to 
have  some  closer  relation  to  him  than  as  a  mere  statuesque  ac¬ 
cessory,  perhaps  because  his  earliest  monuments  were  mere 
conical  pillars,  though  many  primitive  deities  were  symbolized 
in  like  manner.  The  griffin,  emblem  of  the  Hyperborean  Apollo, 
is  common  in  the  later  representations. 

Throughout  all  the  early  cults,  many  of  which  held  their 
ground  down  to  a  late  period  and  any  of  which  might  readily 
influence  a  gem  picture,  we  find  a  remarkable  variety  of  powers 
appropriated  to  him.  Like  most  of  the  older  gods  he  was  prob¬ 
ably  originally  a  deity  of  vegetation,  trees,  flowers,  and  har¬ 
vests,  thence  a  pastoral  god  who  had  care  of  flocks  and  herds 
and  a  god  of  the  chase  who,  at  the  same  time,  hunted  the  rapa¬ 
cious  and  cherished  generally  the  milder  of  the  wild  creatures. 

As  a  wolf-god  he  was  pictured  at  Tarsos  standing  on  an 
omphalos,  grasping  the  paws  of  two  wolves  arranged  heral¬ 
dically,  and  his  power  over  vegetation  was  evidenced  by  the  rite 
in  the  Karneia,  at  Sparta,  where  youths  bearing  grape  clusters 
pursued  a  man  decked  with  garlands ;  also  at  the  Daphnephoria, 
in  Bceotia,  where  a  youth  carried  an  olive  log  wreathed  with 
garlands  and  flowers  with  a  ball  on  top  from  which  other  balls 
were  suspended. 


APOLLO 


209 


The  marble  omphalos  or  boss  at  Delphi,  supposed  to  be 
the  center  of  the  World,  may  be  represented  occasionally. 

On  the  coins  of  Tarentum  he  holds  a  flower. 

At  Chalkedon  he  was  pictured  riding  on  a  swan,  and  sev¬ 
eral  Etruscan  scarabs  bear  the  same  device  or  show  the  god 
as  a  charioteer  driving  a  yoke  of  swans. 

At  Delos  and  at  Olbia  in  Bithynia  he  has  the  kalathos 
and  at  Side  he  holds  a  pomegranate. 

He  did  not  generally  figure  as  a  war-god,  but  at  Megara 
his  statue  held  a  spear,  and  Spartan  coins  show  him  with 
helmet,  spear,  and  bow,  the  figure  ending  sometimes  in  a 
column,  and  with  a  goat  and  a  laurel  wreath  in  the  field. 

Much  more  common  are  evidences  of  his  sea  domain,  prob¬ 
ably  a  resultant  of  increasing  Greek  colonization,  whence  as 
“Founder  of  the  Colony”  and  “Builder  of  the  Home”  this  phase 
of  “The  Dolphin-God”  was  a  natural  emanation.  A  suggestion 
of  this  may  also  be  found  in  his  oracle  at  Syros,  where  re¬ 
sponses  were  given  according  to  the  movements  of  certain  fishes 
in  a  pool  or  to  the  eagerness  with  which  they  eat  of  the  sacrifice. 
More  definitely  the  dolphin  on  the  coins  of  Delphi  and  Olbia, 
the  tunny  fish  on  those  of  Kyzikos,  and  the  trident  on  those 
of  Alexandria  signalize  his  sea  power.  Coins  of  Antigonos 
Gonatas  show  him  seated  on  a  ship’s  prow. 

At  Teos  there  was  a  curious  cult  statue  of  the  Four-handed 
Apollo,  a  unique  representation,  as  is  the  figure  of  Victory 
which  he  holds  at  Patrai. 

His  especial  office  in  many  places  was  that  of  legislator  or 
law-giver,  slaves  bought  their  freedom  through  him,  and,  with 
Herakles  and  Hermes,  he  presided  over  athletic  games  (Note 
Apollo  Lukeios  at  Athens). 

As  a  god  of  healing  and  an  averter  of  pestilences  his  wor¬ 
ship  was  widespread  in  early  times.  Later,  he  seems  to  have 
abdicated  this  function  in  favor  of  his  son,  Asklepios. 

Perhaps  the  story  of  the  slaying  of  the  dragon,  Python,  re¬ 
fers  to  this  phase  of  Apollo,  when  the  dragon  would  typify  a 
demon  of  pestilence.  Perhaps  it  symbolizes  the  Sun-god  slay¬ 
ing  the  mists  of  winter.  A  few  early  gems  which  show  Apollo 


210  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


slaying  a  polypus  may  have  reference  to  his  sea  power  men¬ 
tioned  above  and,  at  the  same  time,  be  the  basis  of  the  Python 
saga. 

Above  all  he  presided  over  the  fine  arts :  music,  song,  dance, 
and  the  intellectual  side  of  life.  The  Muses  and  the  Graces 
were  his  attendants.  It  is  rather  surprising  that  no  late  mon¬ 
uments  show  him  with  a  scroll. 

I  have  reserved  to  the  last  his  best-known  province:  that 
of  the  Sun-god.  All  deities  of  vegetation  had  either  Under¬ 
world  or  solar  relation  and  there  is  little  or  no  evidence  of 
the  former  in  Apollo.  On  the  other  hand,  possibly  his  powers 
as  a  Sun-god  and  still  more  probably  his  widely  recognized 
province  as  a  god  of  divination  led  to  his  identification  in  later 
times,  after  Euripides,  to  be  exact,  with  Helios,  the  early  Greek 
personification  of  the  all-seeing  orb  of  day.  It  probably  had 
its  origin  among  the  Asiatic  Greeks,  since  the  griffin  was  & 
solar  emblem  in  the  East. 

HELIOS 

(PI.  XVI,  7;  XXVII,  14;  XXIX,  17) 

The  Sun-god  of  early  Greek  mythology,  latet  identified 
with  Apollo  and  still  later  with  the  Persian  Mithras,  is  a  rather 
common  figure  on  Roman  gems,  especially  those  of  the  Middle 
and  Lower  Empire  when  both  his  Mithraic  association  and  the 
favor  in  which  the  sports  of  the  circus  were  held  ministered 
to  his  popularity.  He  is  represented  as  a  youth  whose  waving 
locks  are  crowned  with  rays,  sometimes  as  a  bust,  sometimes 
a  standing  figure  but  more  often  as  a  charioteer  driving  his 
team.  The  crown  of  rays  and  the  whip  are  his  attributes. 

THE  MUSES 

(PI.  XVIII,  5;  XXI,  1;  XXVII,  16) 

Especially  associated  with  Apollo  and,  to  some  extent, 
also,  with  Dionysos,  they  were  originally  nymphs  of  inspiring 
springs.  At  first  but  three  in  number:  Melete  (Meditation), 


THE  MUSES,  ARTEMIS 


211 


Mneme  (Remembrance)  and  Aoide  (Song),  they  were  later 
amplified  to  nine.  Kalliope,  muse  of  epic  poetry,  bears  a  tablet 
and  stylus,  sometimes  a  roll;  Kleio,  of  history,  an  open  scroll 
or  several  in  a  box;  Euterpe,  of  lyric  poetry,  a  flute;  Mel¬ 
pomene,  of  tragedy,  a  tragic  mask,  a  club  or  a  sword;  Terp¬ 
sichore,  of  choral  dance,  a  lyre  and  plectrum;  Erato,  of  erotic 
poetry,  also  a  lyre;  Polymnia,  patroness  of  the  higher  hymns, 
is  usually  shown  veiled,  pensive  and  meditating;  Urania,  of 
astronomy,  has  a  globe;  Thalia,  of  comedy  and  idyllic  poetry, 
a  comic  mask,  a  pedum  and  ivy  wreath.  They  all  wear  long 
garments  and  sometimes,  also,  a  cloak.  It  should  be  added 
that  the  especial  attributes  given  above  were  assigned  in  com¬ 
paratively  later  times. 

ARTEMIS— DIANA 

(PI.  I,  5?;  II,  12?; IV,  6?;  VII,  12;  XIV,  4;  XIX,  2;  XXIII,  7,  26,  27; 

XXIV,  18;  XXVIII,  19) 

Unlike  the  worship  of  her  brother,  Apollo,  that  of  Artemis, 
even  in  the  most  civilized  periods  of  Greek  culture,  retained 
more  of  savagery  than  did  the  cults  of  any  other  of  the  greater 
deities.  That  she  was  primarily  an  Earth-goddess  is  certain,  but 
of  the  wilds  rather  than  of  the  harvest  fields.  First  a  protect¬ 
ress  of  animals,  later,  a  huntress  goddess,  with  the  exception 
of  the  goat  in  late  times,  only  wild  creatures  were  sacred  to 
her :  the  hare,  wolf  (at  Troizen),  wild  boar,  bear,  and,  of  course, 
the  stag  and  doe.  On  early  gems  she  appears  holding  a  water- 
bird  by  the  neck,  or  a  stag  and  lion.  Of  birds,  the  quail  was 
her  especial  favorite.  Lakes,  marshes,  rivers,  and,  hence,  wood¬ 
land  trees  and  fish  were  under  her  protection,  all  of  which  are 
evidenced  in  many  early  cult  names.  Artemis  Eurynome,  wor¬ 
shipped  in  Arkadia,  suggests  a  fish-goddess,  while  at  Phigaleia 
was  invoked  a  goddess,  said  to  have  been  Artemis,  whose  lower 
half  was  a  fish’s  tail. 

Though  accounted  a  virgin  goddess  in  all  later  classic  lit¬ 
erature,  yet  her  chastity  was  never  presented  as  a  cult.  In 
many  places  her  office  was  the  encouragement  of  child-bearing, 


212  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


the  assistance  of  women  in  labor,  and  the  rearing  of  children, 
and  in  certain  cults,  like  that  in  Elis  and  on  Mt.  Taygetos,  it  is 
even  possible  to  find  orgiastic  and  lascivious  dances  and  phal¬ 
lic  emblems. 

Rare  war  functions  are  indicated  by  such  cult  titles  as 
Eukleia  (the  glorious)  and  Soteira  (the  savior)  as  which  she 
strides  in  Amazon  attire  with  a  torch  in  each  hand.  A  meas¬ 
ure  of  care  over  mariners  and  travelers  by  sea  is  shown  by  the 
titles,  Neosoos,  Ekbateria  and  Euporia. 

Altogether,  whatever  there  was  of  spiritual,  moral  or  in¬ 
tellectual  force  in  her  worship  was  the  later  outcome  of  the 
imagination  of  poets  and  artists.  By  these  she  is  conventionally 
represented  as  a  huntress  with  long  chiton  or  short  tunic  and 
with  the  usual  attributes  of  bow,  arrow,  and  quiver  or,  some¬ 
times,  a  spear.  Often  a  dog  accompanies  her  and,  rarely,  she 
rides  in  a  chariot  drawn  by  hinds.  Occasionally  one  breast 
is  exposed  but  her  figure  is  never  nude  except  when  she  is 
represented  as  discovered  bathing  by  Aktaion.  Of  the  animals 
mentioned  above,  the  stag  or  doe  is  her  conventional  attend¬ 
ant.  As  a  moon-goddess,  with  the  crescent,  she  is  shown  only 
in  later  art,  after  her  identification  with  Selene. 

As  a  deity  of  the  Under- world,  she  was  Hekate  and,  as 
such,  her  attributes  were  torches,  keys,  serpents  and  daggers 
or  swords.  The  two  last  named  types  are  of  sufficient  import¬ 
ance  to  be  considered  separately  in  sequence. 

Of  minor  cults  there  was  that  of  Amphipolis  where  she 
wears  a  polos  or  basin-shaped  sun-dial  on  her  head  and,  with 
a  torch  in  each  hand,  rides  a  bull  which  suggests  some  connec¬ 
tion  with  Europe.  The  Artemis  of  Kolchis  rides  on  serpents, 
and  another  type  may  be  noted  which  holds  a  flower  or  a  fir- 
apple.  The  Artemis  of  the  Tauric  Chersonesos  wears  the  tur¬ 
ret  crown  of  Cybele. 

On  Etruscan  gems  she  is  often  winged.  The  Roman  Diana 
of  the  Aventine  had  a  temple  adorned  with  the  horns  of  cattle 
instead  of  stags,  and  a  cow  was  offered  to  her  there.  What 
seem  to  be  representations  of  the  Arician  Diana  show  her  with 
a  stag,  a  dish  of  fruit  and  the  bough  which  the  slave  broke 


ARTEMIS 


213 


from  the  sacred  tree  as  a  challenge  to  her  reigning  priest,  the 
Rex  Nemorensis. 

Most  notable  of  the  fusing  of  Eastern  and  Western  ideas 
is  the  Artemis  of  Ephesos,  a  barbaric  personification  of  the 
fructifying  and  all-nourishing  powers  of  nature,  worshipped 
with  orgiastic  rites.  Her  figure,  with  the  breasts  exposed,  is 
swathed  to  the  feet  in  a  spiral,  checquered  or  lozenge-lined 
garment.  When  covered  with  rows  of  breasts,  as  the  figure 
often  is,  they  are  separated  by  parallel  bands,  but  the  details 
and  decorations  vary  considerably.  On  either  side  of  her  are 
animals,  conventionally  stags  or  does,  on  her  head  is  a  barbaric 
head-dress  of  some  kind  and  her  hands,  extending  from  her 
sides,  hold  either  palm  branches  or  what  seem  to  be  supports 
or  fillets  depending  to  the  ground.  Details  of  this  famous  idol 
vary,  especially  in  later  times  when  all  cults  found  housing  at 
Rome,  and  were  more  or  less  modified,  but  the  main  features 
hold  closely.  Other  possible  attributes  are  the  lyre,  spindle, 
birds,  bees,  lions,  goats  or  vases.  I  know  of  no  gem  representa¬ 
tion  of  the  conventional  type  that  can  be  dated  before  about 
150  B.  C. 

In  studying  these  variant  forms  we  must  bear  in  mind  that 
Asia  Minor  was  prolific  of  similar  and  even  more  strangely 
personified  cults,  of  some  of  which  we  know  little,  of  others 
next  to  nothing.  There  was  the  Artemis  Leukophryne  at  Mag¬ 
nesia  in  Lydia,  the  Artemis  Kolone  at  Sardis,  the  Artemis  of 
Perge  in  Pamphylia,  and  many  others. 

The  Ionic  adoption  of  this  barbarian  deity  as  an  Artemis 
is  only  one  manifestation  of  the  many  identifications  and  con¬ 
nections  to  which  the  peculiar  vagueness  and  confusion  of  ideas 
which  seem  to  have  characterized  her  esoteric  cult  gave  rise. 
It  will  be  well  to  run  over  by  name,  briefly,  her  Oriental  iden¬ 
tifications,  since,  possibly,  they  may  furnish  an  occasional  in¬ 
terpretation  of  some  otherwise  cryptic  gem.  They  include,  be¬ 
sides  those  already  mentioned,  Cybele,  Bendis,  Britomartis, 
Diktymia,  and,  perhaps,  Ariadne  and  Europe,  all  of  which  may 
have  been  local  names  of  one  goddess  whose  worship  spread 


214  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


through  Phrygia  and  Thrace  into  Northern  Greece  and  through 
Karia  into  Crete.  The  name  of  Artemis  was  also  sometimes 
connected  with  such  other  foreign  divinities  as  Astarte,  Der- 
keto,  Atargatis,  Anaitis,  and  Ma.  Still  further,  the  nymph 
Kyrene,  Atalante  and  Iphigeneia  have  all  been  held  to  be 
Greek  forms  of  the  same  goddess. 

Again,  out  of  the  principle  of  moral  retribution  connected 
with  certain  phases  of  the  Artemis  worship  came  the  identifica¬ 
tion  with  or  emanation  of  Nemesis  (also  to  be  treated  of  sep¬ 
arately)  and,  through  her,  a  connection  with  the  Moirai  or 
Fates,  so,  too  with  Adrasteia,  twin  sister  of  Nemesis  and  per¬ 
haps  a  local  name  of  Cybele,  detached  at  an  early  time,  a 
mountain  goddess  whose  attendants  were  the  Idaian  Daktyloi 
and  whose  close  relation  with  Cybele  was  recognized  in  the 
Orphic  cults.  She  was  especially  honored  at  Andros  and  Kos. 
Lastly,  the  name,  Artemis  Eileithyia,  shows  an  identification 
with  the  goddess  of  childbirth  who  was  honored  at  Olympia 
together  with  a  male  deity,  Sosipolis,  who  took  the  form  of  a 
serpent  or  a  child  and  was  probably  the  Zeus-Dionysos  of  Crete. 
Eileithyia  was  his  foster-mother.  The  torch  was  her  attribute. 

SELENE— PHOIBE— LUCINA 
(PI.  XXVI,  18) 

This  early  Greek  goddess,  later  identified* with  Artemis, 
deserves  separate  consideration  here,  because  her  province  as 
personification  of  the  moon  and  the  night  gave  much  to  the 
later  art-type  of  the  greater  divinity.  She  was  more  speci¬ 
fically  pictured  as  a  bust  between  the  horns  of  the  crescent 
moon,  sometimes  with  a  diadem.  Sometimes  she  had  long 
wings,  sometimes,  crowned  with  a  crescent,  she  rode  in  a 
chariot  drawn  by  horses  or  by  cows  whose  horns  symbolized 
the  moon.  She  is  always  draped  and  occasionally  her  veil  is 
disposed  in  an  arch  above  her  head.  Raised  and  inverted 
torches  to  indicate  the  rising  and  setting  of  her  light  were 
her  familiar  attributes. 


HEKATE 


215 


HEKATE 
(PI.  XXIX,  16) 

The  Chthonian  form  of  Artemis,  sometimes,  later,  con¬ 
fused  with  Persephone,  was  prior  to  the  fifth  century  rep¬ 
resented  as  a  single  figure  with  torches  as  attributes.  Her 
early  provinces  were  manifold  and  varied.  She  gave  aid  in 
war,  sat  by  kings  in  judgment,  brought  honor  to  horsemen 
and  athletes,  aided  the  hunter  and  the  fisherman,  joined  with 
Hermes  in  giving  increase  to  the  flocks  and  herds,  and  was  a 
foster-mother  to  children.  She  was  associated  with  Zeus 
Meilichios  at  Athens,  and  at  Idrias  in  Karia  the  festival  of 
the  key  was  celebrated  in  her  honor.  Like  the  Artemis  of 
Kolchis,  she  rides  on  serpents. 

Her  original  moon  affiliations  are  more  doubtful  and 
what  she  shows  of  these,  as  when,  with  rays  on  her  head  and 
two  torches,  she  goes  before  the  chariot  of  Hades,  was  probably 
drawn  from  her  association  with  Artemis,  since  the  double 
torches  had  reference  to  the  night  of  the  Under- world  as  well 
as  to  the  rising  and  setting  of  the  Moon. 

She  was  closely  connected  with  the  Kabeiroi  in  Samo- 
thrace  and  with  the  witchcraft  of  Thessaly,  and  these  rela¬ 
tions,  together  with  the  gloomier  phases  of  her  Under- world 
powers,  finally  triumphed,  so  that  her  worship  became  one  of 
the  evil  things  that  grew  with  the  decline  of  pure  Hellenism. 
Ghosts,  witches,  and  the  darker  forms  of  magic  owned  her 
dominance.  She  haunted  graves  and  crossways,  accompanied 
by  the  dogs  of  the  Styx. 

It  was  not  till  after  the  time  of  Alkamenes,  the  pupil  of 
Pheidias,  that  the  conventionalized  representation  of  Ilekate, 
as  three  draped  female  figures  joined  back  to  back,  took  definite 
shape  and  became  the  controlling  art  motive.  Its  origin  is 
vague  and  I  have  seen  no  hypothesis  not  open  to  grave  objec¬ 
tions.  Certainly  it  voices  the  later  and  more  unpleasant  phase 
of  the  goddess.  Good  artists  shunned  it  and  I  have  found  it 
pictured  only  on  a  few  gems  of  the  magic-working  class.  The 


216  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


attributes  which  this  tripartite  deity  holds  are  the  torch,  cord, 
key,  serpent,  dagger,  lance,  and  scourge. 

NEMESIS 

(PI.  XXV,  4.  See  PI.  XIX,  3) 

The  figure  of  Nemesis  on  gems  is  not  at  all  an  uncommon 
one  and  the  distinguishing  characteristic  of  it  is  the  peculiar 
bending  of  one  arm  with  the  elbow  down  and  the  hand  raised 
as  if  about  to  pluck  the  robe  from  her  breast.  This  gesture 
is  found  in  many  early  Artemis  pictures,  indicating  the  con¬ 
nection  between  the  two  and  that  it  is  the  Artemis-Nemesis 
type  the  artist  has  in  mind.  In  later  art  she  seems  to  have 
become  a  more  distinct  personality.  Especial  attributes  of 
Artemis  are  missing,  like  the  stag  or  doe,  and  she  develops 
attributes  of  her  own,  such  as  the  bridle,  yoke,  and  measur¬ 
ing  rod — symbols  of  control  and  proportion,  the  scourge  and 
sword  of  punishment,  and  the  wheel  of  swiftness.  Very  often 
this  last  quality  is  also  evidenced  by  her  being  winged  and, 
rarely,  by  picturing  her  seated  in  a  chariot  drawn  by  griffins, 
her  sacred  beasts.  A  branch  or  a  patera  is  also  a  common  at¬ 
tribute  though  not  especially  a  distinctive  one.  She  is  always 
clothed. 

Rhamnos  near  Athens,  and  Smyrna  were  the  early  seats 
of  her  cult. 

LETO 

The  mother  of  Apollo  and  Artemis  is  rarely  shown;  only, 
I  think,  as  fleeing  with  her  two  children  from  the  wrath  of 
Hera. 

ATHENA— PALLAS— MINERVA 

(PI.  XI,  1;  XIV,  2,  14;  XX,  9;  XXIII,  25;  XXVIII,  18.  See  XXVI,  8) 

Athena  was  one  of  the  few  Greek  divinities  whose  wor¬ 
ship  was  never  tainted  with  barbaric  ideas,  orgiastic  excesses, 
impure  symbolism  or  mystery.  Attempts  were  made  to  identify 
her,  probably  as  a  war  goddess,  with  Egyptian,  Asiatic,  Kol- 


ATHENA 


217 


chian  and  Iberian  deities  of  similar  powers,  but  these  identi¬ 
fications  never  took  ground  in  Greece  and  came  to  little  else¬ 
where.  She  was  always,  first  of  all,  the  goddess  of  the  State, 
the  incarnation  of  its  laws  and  public  virtues,  and  its  protec¬ 
tress  in  war,  all  of  which  are  evidenced  in  many  of  her  cult 
titles.  As  ministering  to  these  ends,  she  presided  over  the 
industrial  arts  (in  Athens  over  the  cultivation  of  the  olive) 
and  the  life  and  growth  of  the  family  and  was  a  patroness  of 
athletics.  She  shared  with  Zeus  the  giving  of  Victory,  and 
Nike,  whom  we  will  consider  next,  was  an  emanation  from 
her.  Her  cults,  though  evidencing  little  of  the  profound  re¬ 
ligious  consciousness  found  in  those  of  Zeus  and  Apollo,  were 
always  noble  and  a  clear  reflex  of  civilized  Hellenic  polity. 

There  are  a  few  scattered  cults  that  indicate  her  presidence 
over  matters  independent  of  those  mentioned  above;  such  as 
that  of  Athena  Hygeia  at  Athens  in  the  sixth  century  B.  C. 
and  Athena  Aithyia  (of  the  gulls)  on  the  Megarid  coast. 
Several  others  suggest  control  over  the  waters  and  the  protec¬ 
tion  of  mariners,  but  generally  she  personified  no  physical 
element.  Torch-races  were  run  in  her  honor. 

The  conventional  representations  of  Athena  show  her 
draped  in  a  long  tunic  and  sometimes  with  a  mantle.  She 
wears  either  the  lofty  crested  Pheidian  helmet  or,  less  often, 
the  unadorned  Corinthian  one,  and  is  shown  either  rushing 
to  battle  as  the  Athena  Promachos  or  standing.  Sometimes 
both  shield  and  lance  are  raised,  sometimes  she  leans  on  one 
with  the  other  resting  on  the  ground,  as  the  peace-loving 
goddess  who  has  achieved  victory.  Sometimes  she  then  holds 
a  patera  and  sometimes  she  pours  a  libation  from  it  on  an 
altar.  More  rarely  she  is  pictured  seated,  and,  occasionally, 
overthrowing  an  Earth-giant.  Her  conventional  attributes  are 
the  olive  branch,  owl,  serpent  (as  Athena  Hygeia  and  in 
Etruria),  lance,  helm,  and  shield  which  last  often  shows  the 
Medousa  head  on  it  when  the  work  is  minute  enough.  Rarer 
attributes  are  a  cock,  a  lamp  or  a  distaff  and  spindle. 

On  several  early  gems  she  has  wings  (in  Etruscan  art 
she  often  has  them  as  do  many  other  deities)  ;  on  one  she  is 


218  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


shown  with  Diomedes  in  a  chariot;  on  one  she  has  a  cornu¬ 
copia  and  on  another  a  mask,  but  these  last  two  are  excep¬ 
tional  and  unique  in  spirit.  In  later  art  she  sometimes  holds 
a  thunderbolt. 

Athena-Nike  (rare)  holds  a  helmet  in  her  hand. 

NIKE— VICTORY 

(PI.  V,  7;  IX,  12,  13;  XVIII,  22;  XX,  12;  XXI,  17;  XXIII,  24; 

XXIV,  14,  15;  XXV,  9;  XXVIII,  18;  XXIX,  7,  17) 

Coming  now  to  this  emanation  of  Athena,  perhaps  the 
most  frequent  of  all  the  figures  on  gems,  with  the  exception 
of  Fortuna  and,  possibly,  Hermes,  we  find  her  generally  rep¬ 
resented  in  a  tunic,  often  a  short  one,  and  sometimes  with 
the  upper  part  of  her  body  nude.  Very  rarely  she  is  altogether 
nude  or  with  only  a  scarf  or  bit  of  drapery.  Usually  she  is 
winged;  always  so,  I  think,  in  later  times,  and  her  conventional 
attributes  are  the  palm  branch  or  wreath.  In  rare  instances, 
where  she  comes  as  a  herald  of  victory,  she  bears  a  caduceus. 
A  trophy,  too,  is  a  somewhat  rarer  attribute,  and  a  candelabra, 
a  very  rare  one.  Once  I  have  seen  her  pictured  with  an  eagle, 
once  casting  dice,  and  once  with  a  thunderbolt.  Not  in¬ 
frequently  she  is  figured  sacrificing  a  bull,  often  writing  on  a 
shield  and  very  often  driving  a  chariot  with  two  or  four  horses. 

Nike  is  also  one  of  the  commonest  figures  shown  with 
other  gods,  often  as  a  Victoriola  borne  in  the  hand  of  Zeus, 
Athena,  Fortuna  or  Ares,  and  it  is  not  unusual  to  find  one  or 
two  Nikes  crowning  a  Jupiter  Serapis,  often  between  legionary 
standards  and  perhaps  with  an  altar  and  an  eagle,  evidently 
a  popular  signet  type  for  soldiers  of  the  Middle  and  Lower 
Empire.  It  is  also  natural  to  find  her  worked  in  on  gems  in 
combination  with  sundry  luck-bringing  symbols. 

ARES— MARS 

(PI.  XXIII,  22—24.  See  PI.  XVII,  12;  XIX,  4) 

This  god  is  very  rare  on  Greek  gems,  but  the  types  of 


ARES,  APHRODITE 


219 


Mars  Ultor  and  the  Mars  Gradivus  striding  forward  with  a 
trophy  are  common  on  Roman  work  of  the  Empire.  The 
first  is  shown  as  a  standing  figure,  with  spear  and  shield  rest¬ 
ing  on  the  ground.  Mars  Navalis  was  first  figured  after  the 
Battle  of  Actium,  his  foot  on  the  prow  of  a  ship  and  holding 
a  Victoriola  in  his  hand.  The  face  type  is  usually  unbearded. 
In  Greek  archaic  art  and  on  gems  of  purely  Roman  character 
he  wears  armor;  on  Hellenistic  gems  or  Roman  that  draw 
their  inspiration  from  the  Hellenistic,  he  is  nude  save  for  the 
helmet.  Sometimes  he  is  fighting  an  Earth-giant  and  occas¬ 
ionally  he  is  shown  with  Cupid  in  some  pose  suggesting  the 
latter’s  superiority. 

His  attributes  beside  the  spear,  shield,  Victoriola  and 
trophy,  are,  more  rarely,  the  torch,  wreath  or  palm  branch. 
The  wolf  and  the  woodpecker  were  sacred  to  him  in  the  animal 
world,  but  they  attend  him  on  gems  very  rarely.  The  ram  was 
sacrificed  to  him. 

APHRODITE— VENUS 

(PI.  VII,  11,  15;  VIII,  20,  23;  IX,  3,  15;  XIV,  11;  XV,  4,  8,  12; 

XIX,  8?,  10,  13?;  XX,  10;  XXII,  5;  XXIII,  6,  10,  21; 

XXIV,  10—12) 

This  goddess,  more  or  less  popular  in  all  times,  was  origi¬ 
nally  an  Earth-divinity  of  probably  Oriental  origin.  Her 
numerous  identifications  with  barbaric  deities,  such  as  Ishtar, 
Attar,  Atargatis,  Astarte,  Derketo,  Belit,  Mylitta,  and  Tanit, 
connect  her  with  the  Assyrian,  Aramaic,  Canaanite,  and  Phoe¬ 
nician  theologies ;  Anaitis  takes  her  into  the  Persian,  and  Allat, 
among  the  Syro- Arabians.  There  also  seems  to  have  been  identi¬ 
fication  in  some  Greek  cults  with  Athena,  Pasiphae,  and,  pos¬ 
sibly,  with  Europe,  Ariadne,  Harmonia,  Hippodameia,  and 
Phaidra. 

As  Aphrodite-Persephone  there  was  a  certain  Under- world 
relation  and,  thence,  a  connection  with  the  Fates,  Furies,  and 
Nemesis.  Here  the  poppy  and  the  tortoise  were  sacred  to  her 
and  this  idea  was  current  in  Etruria. 


220  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


As  Aphrodite  Epitragia,  a  cult  of  the  Attic  coast,  she 
rides  a  goat,  and  at  Thespiai  she  was  worshiped  as  a  Moon- 
goddess,  under  the  name  of  Aphrodite  Melainis  and  with  the 
crescent  as  a  symbol. 

She  was  even  a  war-goddess  in  some  Greek  cults,  and  civic 
and  political  provinces  came  to  her  as  a  goddess  of  marriage 
and  birth.  Her  control  of  human  fruitfulness,  first  on  moral 
lines  and,  later,  without  restrictions,  doubtless  grew  out  of 
her  early  care  over  the  produce  of  the  soil  which  gave  her  the 
kalathos  as  an  emblem,  not  appearing,  however,  to  my  knowl¬ 
edge  on  any  gem,  though  I  have  found  the  cornucopia  in  one 
instance.  As  a  city  goddess  she  wore  the  turret  crown  in 
art,  but  neither  has  this  been  identified  on  any  gems  I  have 
seen.  It  is  always  possible,  however,  and,  as  an  attribute, 
may  have  led  to  the  identification  with  Cybele. 

As  a  sea-goddess,  suggested  by  her  birth,  her  cults  were 
wider  and  more  enduring  and  carried  with  them  such  attributes 
as  the  rudder,  prow,  dolphin,  and  mussel-shell.  Horses,  es¬ 
pecially  sea-horses,  and  other  sea-monsters,  occur  with  her  on 
gems  but  it  is  usually  doubtful  whether  such  representations 
are  of  Aphrodite  or  of  Amphitrite.  As  Aphrodite  Euploia  (of 
the  fair  voyage)  and  under  like  titles  she  may  be  figured 
with  any  appropriate  attribute. 

Coming  down,  however,  to  the  usual  gem  pictures,  it  is 
Aphrodite  the  woman  that  prevails  through  Greek  art  and 
that  inspired  the  work  of  the  gem-engravers.  Usually  draped 
in  early  art,  an  altogether  modest  representation ;  in  Hellenistic 
times  the  drapery  was  apt  to  be  very  slight  or  non-existent: 
a  scarf,  a  mantle  which  has  slipped  down  about  the  legs  leaving 
the  body  nude,  or,  following  the  ideals  of  the  Hellenistic 
sculptors,  she  appears  entirely  nude,  as  if  coming  from  the 
bath  or  born  from  the  sea.  An  early  gem  shows  her  draped 
and  rising  from  a  flower,  and  the  Aphrodite  Urania,  the  celes¬ 
tial  Aphrodite,  daughter  of  Zeus  and  Harmonia  instead  of 
Dione  as  in  the  generally  accepted  legend,  is  always  draped. 
In  this  phase  she  was  adopted  at  Rome  as  the  Venus  Genetrix 
or  Mother  of  HSneas  and,  thence,  of  the  Roman  people.  The 


APHRODITE,  THE  GRACES 


221 


tortoise  seems  to  have  been  an  attribute  of  this  type  as  well 
as  of  the  Chthonian  Aphrodite.  It  was  under  Julius  Caesar, 
who  adopted  the  Venus  Victrix  as  his  patron  goddess  and  wore 
her  on  his  signet,  that  the  Venus  Genetrix  representation  was 
changed  to  fit  his  taste  and  that  of  his  times,  and  the  con¬ 
ventionalized  form  commonest  on  Roman  gems  took  shape. 
This  statue  type  which  occurs  in  numerous  gem  engravings 
of  all  degrees  of  merit,  shows  the  goddess  beside  a  column,  her 
weight  resting  on  one  leg,  the  other  flexed,  with  a  shield  beside 
her  and  carrying  a  spear  while  she  holds  a  helmet  in  one  hand. 
Naturally  the  details  were  sometimes  varied  on  the  gems. 

Through  all  Greek  and  Graeco-Roman  art  there  are  many 
gem  pictures  of  Aphrodite  and  Venus  in  all  kinds  of  what  may 
be  called  genre  scenes.  Eros  and,  later,  Cupid,  and  his  at¬ 
tributes  such  as  bow,  quiver,  torch,  and  butterfly  are  shown 
with  her  in  all  manner  of  compositions.  Sometimes  she  has  a 
shield  in  other  than  the  Victrix  type.  Here  one  foot  is  apt 
to  rest  on  a  slight  elevation  and  the  figure  seems  more  akin 
to  that  of  Nike.  Priapic  Herms  also  occur  in  Venus  pictures 
on  later  gems,  both  Greek  and  Graeco-Roman.  The  legends 
of  her  loves  are  found  illustrated  rather  more  rarely.  Alto¬ 
gether,  there  is  little  of  the  courtesan  in  Aphroditic  art,  as 
there  was  little  in  her  worship  until  it  became  corrupted  in 
degenerate  times. 

Attributes  other  than  those  already  mentioned  are  the 
mirror  and  the  dove,  also  the  swan,  swallow,  sparrow,  and  the 
myrtle,  rose,  apple,  and  bathing  urn — all  undoubtedly  more 
or  less  rare.  Rarer  still  is  the  bull,  and  an  unidentified  bird, 
called  the  iynx,  was  also  sacred  to  her.  Eastern  emblems  are 
the  griffin,  roe,  and  egg.  The  Graces  and,  sometimes,  but  less 
typically,  the  Seasons,  attend  her  in  mythology,  but  I  do  not 
know  of  them  on  ancient  gems.  Aphrodite  was  apt  to  be  a 
subject  favored  by  the  better  artists,  and  these  were  generally 
hostile  to  compositions  containing  more  than  two  figures. 

THE  CHARITES— GRACES 

In  art  these  were  first  represented  draped.  Later  they 


222  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


were  shown  nude  and  either  joining  hands  or  embracing.  Com¬ 
mon  on  modern  gems,  I  have  never  seen  them  on  an  ancient  one. 

EROS— AMOR— CUPID 

(PI.  V,  21;  VII,  4,  11,  15;  IX,  3,  4;  XII,  25;  XIV,  11;  XV,  3,  4,  7,  8; 

XVIII,  9,  10;  XIX,  5;  XX,  10;  XXI,  3;  XXIII,  8; 

XXIV,  1—3,  6—8,  12;  XXV,  2;  XXVI,  9; 

XXVII,  18;  XXIX,  8,  9,  18) 

Perhaps  one  of  the  oldest  seats  of  the  worship  of  Eros  was 
Thespiai  in  Boeotia  where  his  image  was,  like  most  of  the 
earliest  representations  of  Greek  gods,  a  rough  unhewn  stone. 

His  developments  were  governed  by  artistic  rather  than  by 
cult  influences.  For  this  reason  he  is  shown  in  more  varied 
poses  and  occupations  than  any  other  divinity  and,  in  Roman 
times,  when  Amor  or  Cupid,  not  a  native  deity,  was  evolved 
as  a  mere  adaptation  of  Eros,  he  had  little  religious  signifi¬ 
cance,  and  the  fantastic  and  humorous  were  allowed  full  swing 
in  the  art  that  may  be  said  to  have  utilized  him. 

All  the  earlier  Greek  artists  represented  him  as  a  beauti¬ 
ful  boy  just  verging  upon  youth,  nearly  always  nude  and  with 
wings.  After  Alexander  the  childish  type,  so  well  known  to 
modern  art,  began  to  take  shape  and  finally  became  the  con¬ 
ventional  form  under  which  he  was  pictured. 

Of  course  his  characteristic  associations  are  with  Aphro¬ 
dite  and  with  Psyche,  but  there  is  hardly  any  occupation  in 
which  he  is  not  or  may  not  be  found.  It  may  be  well  to  add  in 
this  connection  that,  from  the  general  appeal  of  the  subject, 
Cupid  pictures  are  common  among  the  forgeries,  and  the  broad 
scope  of  the  genuine  work  makes  it  rather  more  difficult  than 
with  other  figures  to  distinguish  the  false. 

His  regular  attributes  are  the  bow,  arrow,  quiver,  and 
torch. 

PSYCHE 

(PI.  XI,  23?;  XIX,  3,  10,  14;  XXIV,  5;  XXVI,  2;  XXIX,  9) 

From  her  constant  association  with  Eros,  Psyche  should 


PSYCHE,  DIONYSOS 


223 


be  considered  in  this  connection.  A  late  appearance  in  Greek 
story  and  art,  we  nevertheless  find  the  soul  represented  as  a 
butterfly  or  a  maid  with  butterfly’s  wings  as  early  as  the  sixth 
century,  B.  C.  She  is  quite  common  in  Hellenistic  and  later 
pictures,  nearly  always  draped  or  partly  so  and  winged,  gener¬ 
ally  with  butterfly  wings.  The  butterfly  was  her  emblem  and, 
by  its  appearance  in  the  field  of  gems,  frequently  serves  to 
identify  an  otherwise  uncertain  figure  or  head.  Down  to  the 
end  of  Graeco-Roman  art  she  was  often  pictured  as  a  butterfly. 
On  one  gem  I  find  her  with  a  torch,  on  another,  with  a  caduceus, 
evidently  symbolic  of  Hermes  in  his  psychopompic  character. 

There  seems  to  have  been  some  connection  between  Psyche 
and  Nemesis,  as  we  find  representations  of  a  maiden  with 
typical  bent  arm  and  the  butterfly,  also  busts  with  a  veil 
thrown  over  the  back  of  the  head  and  a  butterfly  in  the  field, 
which  probably  have  reference  to  this  association  of  ideas. 

DIONYSOS— IACCHOS— BACCHUS— LIBER 

(PL  VII,  3;  XIV,  6,  13;  XV,  13;  XVIII,  8;  XIX,  1;  XX,  13;  XXI,  21; 

XXII,  2;  XXIII,  5;  XXVIII,  17) 

Pre-eminently  an  Earth-god  and  adored  as  such,  with  De¬ 
meter  and  Persephone,  the  cults  of  Dionysos  were  widespread 
and  the  Oriental  element  is  more  or  less  prominent  in  most  of 
them.  His  was  a  worship  most  difficult  to  maintain  in  Hellenic 
purity,  most  susceptible  to  barbaric  influences  and  to  degener¬ 
ate  into  all  manner  of  orgiastic  excesses  and  licentious  rites. 
He  is  common  on  gems,  especially  on  those  of  the  later  develop¬ 
ments. 

In  early  Greek  and  Etruscan  art  he  is  always  represented 
robed,  bearded,  generally  crowned  with  the  vine,  and  of  benig¬ 
nant  aspect.  This  type  pertained  through  all  time  as  an  ar¬ 
chaism,  though  the  dignity  of  it  was  often  lost  in  the  emphasis 
of  the  vicious  tendencies  of  his  worship.  Later  representations 
altogether  favored  the  beautiful  youth  and,  occasionally,  the 
child  type,  often  of  an  effeminate  aspect  and  generally  nude 
or  nearly  so.  In  one  class  of  distinctly  effeminate  representa- 


224  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


tions  he  wears  a  long  garment.  He  is  seldom  throned  but  often 
in  a  reclining  posture  and  sometimes  riding  a  panther  or  in 
a  chariot  drawn  by  these,  his  favored  beasts.  Also  the  bull, 
lion,  fawn,  lynx,  tiger,  ass,  goat,  serpent,  and  dolphin  were  sacred 
to  him,  and  he  wears,  often,  a  panther’s  or  a  fawn’s  skin.  The 
goose,  too,  seems  to  have  been  related  to  many  Dionysiac  and 
kindred  Aphroditic  cults.  His  typical  attributes  are  the  thyr- 
sos,  wine  cup,  grapes,  vine,  laurel,  ivy,  and  rose.  A  comedy 
mask  was  a  not  uncommon  attribute,  as  of  one  who  presided 
as  a  genial  god  over  poetry,  music,  and  the  drama  and  was  thus 
related  to  Aphrodite,  Eros,  the  Graces,  and  the  Muses.  Some¬ 
times,  even,  he  is  symbolized  by  a  mask.  His  relation  to  Apollo 
seems,  rather,  to  be  based  on  his  inspiring  to  prophecy.  His 
most  ancient  images  displayed  the  phallus  as  an  emblem  of 
generative  power,  but  I  do  not  know  of  this  idea  being  empha¬ 
sized  on  a  gem.  On  one  Etruscan  scarab  he  carries  a  cornu¬ 
copia,  and  on  an  early  Greek  vase  he  rides  a  bull. 

His  companions  in  later  art,  when  he  is  not  shown  alone, 
are  Seilenos  or  one  or  more  satyrs,  nymphs  or  bacchantes  and, 
of  course,  his  mythological  life  is  sometimes  pictured,  as  with 
Ariadne. 

As  Zagreus,  the  horned  child  of  Zeus  and  of  Persephone 
or  Demeter,  his  Under-world  associations  are  emphasized  and 
his  being  born  anew  symbolizes  the  spring  vegetation.  The 
Orphic  cults  had  special  regard  for  this  phase  of  him  but  I 
have  never  seen  a  gem  that  seems  to  express  it. 

Most  prominent  among  his  Eastern  identifications  is  that 
with  the  Thracian  and  Phrygian  god,  Sabazios,  who  was,  some¬ 
times,  also  identified  with  Zeus  and  whose  orgiastic  worship, 
closely  affiliated  with  that  of  Rhea-Cybele  and  Attis,  was  in¬ 
troduced  into  Athens  in  the  fifth  century  B.  C.  and,  in  the  days 
of  later  paganism,  was  widely  spread  in  Italy.  Also  a  god  of 
dying  and  reviving  nature,  his  especial  emblem  was  the  serpent. 
The  gem  artists  seem  to  have  neglected  him  but  he  is  possible 
on  unexplained  or  new  stones. 

The  Italian  Liber,  god  of  wine,  was  also  identified  with 
Dionysos. 


SEILENOS,  SATYRS  225 

SEILENOS 

(PI.  IV,  1;  V,  1,  23;  VI,  7,  11;  XII,  13;  XIII,  8;  XIX,  1. 

See  XXI,  13;  XXVII,  3,  4) 

Of  the  lesser  divinities  that  are  connected  with  Dionysos 
or  Bacchus,  Seilenos  is  the  most  important,  both  intrinsically 
and  on  the  score  of  his  frequent  appearance  on  gems.  A  prim¬ 
itive  woodland  and  fountain  deity  in  Asia  Minor,  with  a  care 
over  animals  and  gifted  with  music  and  prophecy,  he  was  taken 
up  by  Greece  as  the  son  of  Pan  or  Hermes  and  a  nymph,  the 
oldest  of  the  satyrs  and  the  teacher  of  Dionysos.  In  later  art 
he  is  just  a  drunken  old  satyr,  often  accompanied  by  a  goat 
or  riding  on  one  or  on  an  ass.  Sometimes  a  rooster  or  a  hare, 
but  usually  the  amphora,  wine  cup  or  wine  skin  is  found  with 
him.  Not  infrequently  on  Etruscan  gems  he  is  sailing  on  an 
amphora  or  on  a  raft  supported  by  them,  and,  throughout  the 
early  Italian  cycle,  he  seems  to  be  closely  related  to  Herakles. 
On  one  gem  he  is  shown  with  a  sphinx,  on  one  with  a  lyre,  and 
on  a  third,  an  archaic  Greek  stone,  he  is  pronouncedly  itliy- 
phallic  and  drives  a  chariot  drawn  by  lions. 

His  figure  is  nearly  always  naked,  that  of  an  aged  satyr, 
with  a  tail,  often  with  animal  ears,  snub-nosed,  bearded,  usually 
pot-bellied,  and  sometimes  with  a  hairy  body.  Occasionally  he 
has  little  horns. 

In  early  Greek,  Phoenician,  and  Etruscan  art  his  figure 
was  undoubtedly  powerful  in  some  way  as  an  amulet,  though, 
even  then,  he  seems  also  to  have  been  pictured  solely  with  an 
eye  to  the  humorous  possibilities  which  controlled  in  so  many 
later  gems.  Likewise,  a  Seilenos  mask  was  often  engraved  for 
its  talismanic  power,  and  when  the  Roman  symplegmata  be¬ 
came  the  fashionable  charms  it  was  usually  worked  into  the 
design. 

SATYRS 

(PI.  VIII,  18  22;  XVI,  13;  XVIII,  7;  XIX,  1) 

These  figures  belong  especially  in  the  Bacchic  cycle.  They 
are  common  in  gem  pictures  as  purely  art  motives  rather  than 
as  expressing  any  religious  idea,  and  their  occupations  are 


226  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


varied,  though  primarily  those  that  lie  within  the  province  of 
Dionysos.  They  are  pictured  with  amphoras,  wine  cups,  and 
wine  skins;  drinking,  pouring  wine,  and  exhilarated  or  som¬ 
nolent  from  its  effects;  dancing,  playing  flutes  or  cymbals, 
drawing  the  garment  from  some  sleeping  nymph  or  struggling 
with  her,  playing  with  Cupid  or  an  animal,  usually  a  goat, 
and  in  compositions  akin  to  what  we  call  genre,  but,  as  a  rule, 
sportive  or  humorous.  We  do  not  find  them  on  early  gems 
when  the  ideas  of  wearers  were  more  serious  and  the  Bacchic 
cycle  unpopular,  but  in  Hellenistic  art  and  still  more  in 
Graeco-Roman  their  place  is  well  established. 

Their  figures  are  generally  nude  or  nearly  so,  their  hair 
disordered,  sometimes  crowned  with  wreaths,  and  their  point¬ 
ed  ears  and  little  horns  are  often  shown.  Sometimes  they 
are  ithyphallic  but  the  tail  is  their  most  distinguishing  charac¬ 
teristic.  The  pedum  or  shepherd’s  crook  is  a  not  uncommon 
attribute  and  also  the  thyrsos  or,  for  that  matter,  any  of  the 
emblems  of  Dionysos. 

The  satyr,  Marsyas,  is  indicated  by  his  flute,  or  he  is  shown 
bound  to  a  tree  and  about  to  be  flayed  by  Apollo  (PI.  XXIV, 
13). 

PAN— FAUNUS 

(PI.  VII,  14;  VIII,  21?;  XXI,  21?) 

Belonging  to  the  Dionysiac  cycle,  Pan  was  originally  an 
Arkadian  nature-god  of  woodlands  and  a  protector  of  flocks. 
He  also  became  a  god  of  prophecy.  Before  the  time  of  Praxi¬ 
teles  he  is  shown  in  human  form  but  with  horns  sprouting 
from  his  head  and  bearing  a  shepherd’s  pipe  or  a  pedum. 
Later,  the  goat’s  legs  were  given  him  but  the  earlier  rep¬ 
resentation  was  by  no  means  given  up,  especially  where  either 
an  archaizing  tendency  or  taste  for  the  more  attractive  figure 
as  opposed  to  the  grotesque  dominated.  Common  attributes 
were  a  garland  or  twigs  of  pine  and  a  tortoise.  Greek  gems 
of  the  good  period  show  him  with  a  bird  in  his  hand.  The 
Romans  identified  him  with  the  Italian  Faunus  or  good  spirit 
of  the  woods. 


NYMPHS,  BACCHANTES 


227 


NYMPHS 

(PI.  IV,  19;  XV,  5?,  7?,  10;  XXII,  10) 

Lowest,  together  with  the  satyrs,  among  the  divinities, 
these  personifications  of  Nature  in  her  specific  forms  are  the 
loveliest  of  all  the  creations  of  Greek  mythology,  and,  though 
connected  in  many  ways  with  many  gods,  yet  seem  to  fall 
naturally  in  place  here  as  belonging,  for  the  most  part,  on  gems 
at  least,  to  the  Bacchic  cycle. 

They  are  pictured  as  beautiful  maidens,  nude  or  lightly 
clothed,  and  often  with  flowers  or  garlands.  The  satyrs  are 
their  familiar  companions.  Also  they  are  shown  with  Dionysos 
and  may  appear  wfith  Pan,  Herakles,  Artemis,  Apollo,  Hermes 
or  in  many  other  associations.  The  sea  and  ocean  nymphs, 
Nereids  and  Okeanids,  are  the  natural  companions  of  Posei¬ 
don  and  his  Tritons.  Shells,  dolphins,  sea-monsters  and  other 
emblems  of  the  sea  are  their  appropriate  attributes.  The 
naiads,  nymphs  of  streams  and  fountains,  are  often  shown 
drawing  water  or  carrying  it  in  an  urn.  Besides  these  are 
the  dryads  or  hamadryads,  wood-nymphs  each  of  whom  was  sup¬ 
posed  to  have  her  life  associated  with  that  of  some  particular 
tree.  The  oreads  are  the  nymphs  of  the  hills.  The  Nereid, 
Galene,  shown  as  the  head  and  shoulders  of  a  girl  swimming, 
is  a  common  type  of  Hellenistic  art  (PI.  XY,  10). 

BACCHANTES 

(PI.  VIII,  22;  IX,  6,  8;  XIV,  9;  XXI,  20) 

Bacchantes  or  Mainads,  while  not  necessarily  divine 
personages,  are  yet  often  nymphs.  They  are  the  especial  com¬ 
panions  of  Dionysos  and  typify  the  influence  of  the  wine-god. 
Wreathed  with  vine  leaves  and  lightly  clothed  with  fawn  skins 
or  fluttering  draperies,  they  are  the  embodiment  of  revelling 
enthusiasm.  Dancing,  rushing  madly  forward,  or  overcome 
by  wine,  they  bear  thyrsi,  cymbals,  swords,  dismembered  kids 
or  roe-calves  and,  sometimes,  even  serpents. 


228  GREATER  GODS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCIATES 


HERMES— MERCURIUS 

(PI,  IV,  17;  V,  17;  VIII,  15;  XII,  1,  2,  5,  8,  10,  19;  XIII,  19;  XVII,  11; 

XX,  2;  XXII,  12;  XXIII,  14—16.  See  XXVI,  5,  6) 

As  the  deity  presiding  over  worldly  and,  more  especially, 
commercial  prosperity,  Hermes  is  naturally  one  of  the  three  or 
four  commonest  figures  on  gem  signets. 

Originally,  like  most  early  divinities,  an  Earth-god  of 
harvests  and  flocks,  with  the  usual  Chthonian  relations,  his 
later  provinces  grew  out  of  the  establishment  of  commerce  and 
the  fact  that  his  development  best  fitted  him  for  the  place. 
Mercurius,  his  Roman  identification,  seems  to  have  been  a 
trade  god  from  pretty  early  times. 

The  first  distinctive  figures  of  Hermes,  derived  from  the 
column  that  personified  all  the  gods  in  barbaric  times,  was 
what  we  know  as  the  Herm,  a  square  pillar  surmounted  by  a 
bearded  head  and  equipped  with  a  phallus,  and  this  representa¬ 
tion  pertains  through  all  art  along  with  the  most  artistic 
later  conceptions.  Herms  were  set  up  by  the  roadways,  es¬ 
pecially  at  cross-roads,  and  came  to  symbolize  the  God’s  care 
over  these  means  of  civilized  communication. 

As  the  protector  of  flocks  and  herds,  his  early  province 
extends  down  into  the  latest  times.  He  is  pictured  with  a 
sheep  or  a  ram,  often  riding  on  one. 

His  Chthonian  character,  too,  maintained  itself,  perhaps 
fostered  by  the  cult  brotherhoods  of  Italy,  and  the  Hermes 
Psychopompos  (conductor  of  souls)  is  shown  on  a  long  line 
of  gems  where  he  appears  with  the  half  figure  of  a  man  issuing 
out  of  the  ground  or  from  a  jar  symbolic  of  the  Under-world. 
Sometimes  the  soul  is  typified  as  a  human-headed  swan,  a 
butterfly  or  a  girl  with  butterfly  wings,  whence  the  Psyche 
myth.  As  such  he  was  later  identified  with  the  Egyptian 
Anubis.  As  a  god  of  sleep  and  dreams  he  is  closely  related  to 
Hypnos.  His  control  over  buried  treasure  was  a  natural 
resultant  of  wealth-giving  and  Under-world  power.  His  mytho¬ 
logical  character  showed  him  as  the  master  of  all  manner  of 
cleverness,  craft,  lying,  chicanery,  even  to  the  point  of  theft. 


HERMES,  HEPHAISTOS 


229 


In  fact,  he  was  the  especial  patron  of  thieves.  As  herald  and 
messenger  of  the  gods,  he  was  invested  with  the  diplomacy 
necessary  in  one  having  ambassadorial  functions  and,  thence, 
again,  probably  came  the  Hermes  Logios,  god  of  eloquence. 

As  a  patron  god  of  the  palaistra  and  all  manner  of  gym¬ 
nastic  sports,  it  was  as  an  exponent  of  skill  rather  than  of 
mere  strength  that  he  held  his  place.  As  such  his  attribute 
was  the  strigil  and,  sometimes,  the  palm  tree,  as  the  source 
of  the  oil  used  by  athletes. 

His  inventions  were  many,  including  the  lyre,  whence  the 
tortoise  was  sacred  to  him,  the  shepherd’s  pipe,  and  even,  ac¬ 
cording  to  later  times,  letters,  figures,  mathematics,  and 
astronomy.  As  god  of  trade  he  carries  a  purse. 

His  figure  in  early  art  was  often  bearded,  as  were  the 
Herm  heads.  Generally,  however,  and  always  in  late  represen¬ 
tations,  he  is  beardless.  Occasionally  robed  on  archaic  Greek 
gems,  in  all  later  art  he  is  either  nude  or  wears  a  mantle,  short 
traveling  cloak  or  some  light  bit  of  drapery. 

Besides  those  already  referred  to,  his  typical  attributes 
extending  through  all  times  are  the  petasos  or  broad-brimmed 
traveling  hat,  sometimes  winged,  the  winged  sandals,  and, 
pre-eminently,  the  caduceus  or  herald’s  staff,  originally  a  rod 
about  the  end  of  which  two  short  branches  intertwined,  and, 
later,  the  conventional  form :  a  rod  twined  with  two  serpents 
whose  heads  rise,  facing,  above  the  end.  The  rooster  is  his 
most  common  attendant,  possibly  on  the  score  of  its  reputa¬ 
tion  for  being  wide-awake,  and  on  one  gem  a  rooster  is  en¬ 
graved  wearing  the  petasos  and  holding  a  caduceus.  A  unique 
specimen  shows  Hermes  rolling  a  hoop,  possibly  as  an  emblem 
of  fortune. 

HEPHAISTOS— VULCAN 

This  god  is  a  very  rare  figure  on  gems.  In  ancient  art 
he  wears  a  semi-oval  cap  and  a  tunic  which  leaves  one  arm  and 
shoulder  bare.  He  is  bearded,  but  on  one  of  the  few  Hephaistos 
gems,  an  Etruscan  scarab,  Sethlans,  the  Etruscan  Vulcan,  is 
shown  smooth-faced.  His  attributes  are  the  hammer,  tongs, 
and  other  instruments  of  the  iron-worker’s  craft. 


CHAPTER  II 


LESSER  AND  LATER  DEITIES  WITH  THEIR 
ATTRIBUTES— MONSTERS 

TYCHE— FORTUNA 

(PI.  XXV,  9,  21;  XXIX,  7,  17.  See  PI.  XIV,  12) 

Among  the  lesser  divinities,  many  of  whom  were  personi¬ 
fications  of  different  virtues,  the  most  important  to  the 
student  of  gems,  as  being  the  commonest  of  all  figures  on  these, 
is  Fortuna.  She  does  not  seem  to  be  found  on  early  signets, 
though  the  temple  of  the  Fortuna  of  Prseneste,  with  its  oracle 
given  by  the  famous  Sortes  Prsenestinae  (Prsenestian  lots), 
was  a  center  of  Italian  pilgrimage  from  very  ancient  times. 
With  the  growth  of  the  more  material  superstitions  in  the 
Hellenistic  Age,  however,  Fortuna  was  widely  worshipped,  as 
the  personification  of  prosperity  and,  in  Roman  times,  down  to 
the  latest  art,  she  is  shown  in  a  very  considerable  proportion 
of  the  gem-pictures,  usually  as  a  single  figure,  but  often  with 
other  deities;  sometimes  seated  but,  as  a  rule,  standing. 

She  is  nearly  always  draped,  a  few  half-draped  figures 
being  of  rather  doubtful  identification,  and,  sometimes,  a  veil 
hangs  at  the  back  of  her  head. 

Her  attributes  are,  first  and  foremost,  the  cornucopia, 
symbol  of  the  gifts  of  nature,  and  the  rudder  or  steering  oar, 
as  guiding  the  affairs  of  the  World.  Rarer,  is  the  wheel  or 
ball  at  her  feet,  typifying  her  unsteadiness. 

There  were  many  local  cults  that  may  be  within  the  lines 
of  probable  representation,  such  as  the  Tyche  of  Antioch, 
sculptured  by  Eutyches  as  a  seated  figure  with  a  mural  crown 
and  with  wheat-ears  in  her  hand. 

230 


ASKLEPIOS,  HYGEIA,  TELESPHOROS,  RHEA  231 


Also,  through  later  times  and  in  the  general  mixture  of 
deities  and  cults,  it  is  not  uncommon  to  find  other  goddesses 
with  attributes  of  Fortuna  or  Fortuna  with  theirs,  such,  for 
instance,  as  an  Artemis-Tyche. 

ASKLEPIOS— ^SCULAPIUS 
(PI.  XXIV,  19) 

The  worship  of  Asklepios,  son  of  Apollo  and  god  of  heal¬ 
ing,  was  widespread  in  Greece,  especially  in  Peloponnesos. 
Pergamos,  Trikka  in  Thessaly,  and  Kos,  all  were  centers  of 
his  cult,  and  in  Rome  iEsculapius  was  especially  honored  after 
293  B.  C. 

He  is  not  uncommon  on  gems  and  is  represented  as  a 
bearded  man,  nearly  always  in  a  long  himation  or  mantle, 
though  on  one  gem  given  in  Furtwangler  he  is  shown  nude. 
His  attribute  is  a  staff  around  which  a  serpent  twines.  A 
cock  was  sacrificed  to  him.  His  attendants,  when  he  has 
them,  are  his  daughter,  Hygeia,  and  the  boy,  Telesphoros. 

In  later  Roman  art,  iEsculapius  was  one  of  the  deities 
confounded  with  the  Egyptian  Serapis. 

HYGEIA 

(PI.  XXII,  8;  XXIV,  19) 

The  daughter  of  Asklepios  is  shown  on  gems  as  a  maiden, 
generally  draped,  rarely  half  nude,  and  giving  drink  to  a 
serpent. 

TELESPHOROS 

Pictured  as  a  boy,  the  deity  of  recovery  appears  occasion¬ 
ally  with  Asklepios  or  Hygeia. 

RHEA—KUBELE  (CYBELE)— MAGNA  MATER 
(PI.  I,  5?;  XXIII,  1) 

The  cult  of  Rhea,  mother  of  Zeus  and  his  brothers  and 
sisters,  and  worshipped  in  Rome  as  Magna  Mater,  was  prom- 


232 


LESSER  AND  LATER  DEITIES 


inent  in  Greece.  Not  identical  with  Gaia  or  Demeter,  she 
was  nevertheless  closely  allied  to  them  as  an  Earth-goddess,  a 
personification  of  the  procreative  power  of  Nature.  She  seems  to 
have  been  the  central  figure  of  early  Cretan  theology  where  the 
ox,  serpent  and  lion  were  her  attributes.  Flowers  and  fruits 
were  naturally  under  her  care.  There,  also,  she  was  a  war- 
goddess  with  spear,  bow,  and  helmet,  and  she  seems  to  have 
had  some  orgiastic  character  which  was  lost  when  she  became 
popular  on  the  mainland  of  Greece,  as  being  foreign  to  Hel¬ 
lenic  ideas  and  refinement.  Pheidias  sculptured  her  as  a  benign 
matron  with  a  lion  and  a  tympanum  or  small  drum.  In  one 
sense  she  should  hardly  be  classed  among  the  lesser  divinities, 
but  her  real  prominence  throughout  classical  times  seems  to 
have  depended  almost  entirely  on  her  identification  with  other 
goddesses. 

Whether  Rhea  was  originally  the  same  as  the  Phrygian 
Cybele  is  not  certain  but  that  she  was  later  pretty  thoroughly 
merged  in  her  is  clear.  As  Cybele  she  was  not  favored  in 
Greece,  where  such  rites  as  hers,  the  extreme  of  the  orgiastic, 
were  regarded  with  little  favor,  but  in  Rome  of  a  later  day 
the  popularity  of  her  worship  was  very  marked,  even  extend¬ 
ing  down  beyond  the  Christian  supremacy  and  making  its  in¬ 
fluence  felt  in  heretical  sects. 

As  the  founder  of  cities,  the  mural  crown,  a  diadem  of 
towers,  was  Cybele’s  attribute,  but,  even  more  generally,  the 
tympanum  and  the  lion.  She  is  usually  shown  either  en¬ 
throned  between  lions,  in  a  chariot  drawn  by  them  or  riding 
on  one.  Also,  the  oak  and  pine  were  sacred  to  her. 

A  goddess  of  many  associations  and  admixtures,  both 
Artemis  and  Aphrodite  were  confounded  with  her  in  some 
cults  and,  as  the  former,  she  has  the  crescent  moon  on  one 
gem. 

At  Rome  the  worship  of  Magna  Mater  was  introduced 
from  Phrygia  in  204  B.  C.  The  sacred  black  stone,  her 
emblem,  was  brought  from  that  country  and  installed  in  a 
temple  built  for  it  on  the  Palatine  Hill. 


SYRIA  DEA,  KOURETES 


233 


SYRIA  DEA 
(PI.  XXIII,  17) 

This  deity  of  generation  and  fecundity,  worshipped  in 
Syria  under  the  name  of  Atargatis,  was  introduced  into  Greece 
after  the  death  of  Alexander  and  spread  to  Rome  under  the 
Empire.  We  find  her,  according  to  the  custom  of  later  pagan¬ 
ism,  with  a  long  list  of  identifications  and  connections,  and 
she  shares  the  attributes  of  Juno,  Venus,  Rhea,  Cybele,  Min¬ 
erva,  Diana,  and  others.  On  Roman  monuments  she  is,  gen¬ 
erally,  like  Cybele,  enthroned  between  lions.  The  fish  was 
sacred  to  her. 

KOURETES,  KABEIROI,  IDAIAN  DAKTYLOI 
(See  PI.  XXVI,  29) 

The  Cretan  Kouretes,  the  Idaian  Daktyloi  of  Phrygia  and 
Crete,  and  the  Kabeiroi  of  Samothrace,  seem  all  to  have  been 
in  the  nature  of  magicians  and  demonic  smiths,  with  control, 
primarily,  over  the  working  of  metals.  The  first  named, 
according  to  legend,  had,  by  striking  their  spears  against  their 
shields,  drowned  the  cries  of  the  infant  Zeus,  so  that  Kronos 
could  not  find  and  destroy  him;  the  second  had  mysteries  in 
many  places  and  secured  their  initiates  against  disaster,  es¬ 
pecially  by  sea,  and  the  last  named,  besides  having  powers 
over  nature  and  patronage  of  music  and  rhythm,  also  afforded 
magical  protection  against  perils. 

All  of  them  were  more  or  less  identified  with  the  worship 
of  Rhea  and  Cybele,  and,  from  their  mysterious  magic-working 
influence,  we  would  naturally  expect  their  appearance  on  gems. 

The  hammer  and,  possibly  as  to  the  Kabeiroi,  the  rhyton, 
a  peculiar  kind  of  drinking  cup  ending  in  an  animal’s  head, 
are  attributes  that  might  serve  to  identify  them,  but  they  may 
usually  be  suspected  in  figures  of  metal  workers,  expecially 
when  these  have  any  dwarfish  or  demonic  aspect, — perhaps, 
also,  the  not  uncommon  dwarf  riding  a  sea-horse  or  sailing 
on  an  amphora,  may  be  one  of  the  Daktyloi.  Little  definite 


234 


LESSEE  AND  LATER  DEITIES 


is  known  about  their  worship  which  seems  to  have  been,  for 
the  most  part,  mysteries,  and  an  atmosphere  of  vagueness  en¬ 
velops  the  subject. 

GAIA— TELLUS 
(See  PI.  IV,  8;  XXVI,  17) 

I  do  not  know  that  the  figure  of  Gaia,  the  original  Earth- 
goddess  according  to  the  Theogeny  of  Hesiod,  or  of  Tellus, 
her  Roman  equivalent,  has  ever  been  found  on  a  gem.  In  later 
Hellenistic  art  she  was  represented  as  a  draped,  matronly 
woman  with  children  in  her  lap  and  cattle  around  her,  or 
amid  figures  that  personify  fire  or  water.  At  Athens  she  was 
worshipped  as  Gaia  Kourotrophos,  the  nourisher  of  children, 
and  as  Gaia  Chthonios,  a  deity  of  the  Under-world,  to  whom 
were  offered  seven  black  lambs.  At  Delphi  she  was  honored 
as  the  primeval  prophetess  who  sent  forth  the  inspiring  Earth- 
vapors. 

Europe  has  been  regarded  as  a  Creto-Bceotian  form  of 
Gaia,  and  Themis,  her  daughter,  goddess  of  law  and  order, 
who  sometimes  was  pictured  riding  a  bull,  was  an  emanation 
from  her.  Conventional  later  representations  of  Themis  show 
a  stately,  robed  woman  holding  a  pair  of  scales  and  a  cor¬ 
nucopia  to  symbolize  the  blessings  of  order. 

OKEANOS— OCEANUS 

In  ancient  Greek  mythology  the  River  of  the  World 
which  bounds  the  Earth  and  Sea  was  personified,  in  art,  as  a 
venerable  man  with  a  long  beard  and  bull’s  horns  on  his  head; 
on  coins,  as  a  man-headed  bull.  Crabs’  claws  are  also  at¬ 
tributes,  but  he  seems  to  be  very  rare  or  non-occurrent  on  the 
gems. 

MELIKERTES 

A  Greek  sea-deity,  perhaps  derived  originally  from  the 
Phoenician  Melkart  and  identified  with  Palaimon  and  the 
Roman  Portunus,  god  of  harbors,  is  shown  in  art  mounted 


GLAUKOS,  THANATOS,  HYPNOS 


235 


or  reclining  on  a  dolphin.  Megara  and  Korinth  were  especial 
seats  of  his  worship,  but  it  extended  throughout  the  Mediter¬ 
ranean  coasts. 

GLAUKOS 

In  art  he  is  usually  the  sea-deity, — an  old  man  with  long 
beard  and  hair,  a  fish’s  tail,  and  shells  as  attributes, — a  dif¬ 
ficult  figure  to  distinguish  on  gems  from  the  common  Triton. 

The  Cretan  Glaukos,  son  of  Minos,  may  be  shown  in  the 
honey  jar  into  which  he  fell  and  met  his  death,  to  be  after¬ 
ward  brought  to  life  by  the  seer,  Polyeidos. 

THANATOS 

(PI.  XXIV,  9.  See  PI.  XIII,  15) 

The  Greek  personification  of  Death  is  shown  as  a  nude 
figure,  usually  winged,  with  crossed  legs  to  symbolize  rest  and 
holding  a  lowered  torch  or  leaning  on  an  extinguished  one. 
Several  winged  figures  on  Etruscan  scarabs  may  be  Thanatos, 
most  plausibly  one  that  is  shown  bending  over  an  urn  and 
another  that,  together  with  a  winged  woman,  possibly  Eos,  is 
bearing  away  a  dead  hero  (Memnon).  Later  Roman  rep¬ 
resentations  are  only  to  be  distinguished  from  those  of  Cupid 
by  the  crossed  legs  and  the  reversed  torch.  Furtwangler  has 
interpreted  a  figure  with  the  reversed  torch  but  whose  legs  are 
not  crossed  as  symbolizing  wearied  love. 

HYPNOS 

(PI.  XIX,  19;  XXIV,  17;  XXV,  5) 

The  personification  of  sleep  was  pictured  in  ancient  art 
under  various  forms;  often  with  the  wings  of  an  eagle  or  a 
butterfly  on  his  head.  Sometimes  he  holds  a  poppy  or  a  horn 
from  which  he  drops  slumber.  One  Etruscan  scarab  shows 
a  winged  figure  of  an  old  man  holding  a  twig  and  standing 
over  a  weary  Herakles,  doubtless  a  Hypnos,  as  is  a  similar 
figure  with  a  sleeping  woman  on  his  knees. 


236 


LESSER  AND  LATER  DEITIES 


MORPHEUS 

The  Greek  Oneiroi  (dreams)  have  not  been  to  my  knowl¬ 
edge  pictured  on  gems.  Hesiod  called  them  the  children  of 
night;  brothers  and  sisters  of  Hypnos  and  Thanatos.  Later, 
they  were  held  to  be  sons  of  Hypnos.  Morpheus,  the  best 
known,  appeared  only  in  human  form  and  was  shown  in  art 
as  an  old  man  pouring  from  a  horn.  He  was  worshipped  es¬ 
pecially  at  places  where  there  were  dream-oracles  and  at 
shrines  of  Asklepios.  Ikelos  took  the  shape  of  a  man  or  of 
any  kind  of  animal  and  typified  the  oppressive  dreams  we 
call  night-mares.  Phantasos  appeared  in  the  guise  of  some 
inanimate  object. 


EUTHENIA— ABUNDANTIA 
(PL  XXV,  18) 

Euthenia  is  represented  in  art  as  a  woman  with  poppies 
or  wheat-ears.  At  Alexandria  she  was  pictured  supported  by 
a  sphinx,  at  Thyria  with  a  goblet.  The  Roman  personifica¬ 
tion  of  abundance  may  well  be  common  on  gems,  and  where 
we  find  a  female  figure  with  the  cornucopia  of  Fortuna  but 
without  the  rudder,  Abundantia  may  be  suspected.  As  a  gem 
subject,  however,  she  yields  in  talismanic  suggestiveness  to 
Fortuna  and  would,  naturally,  be  used  much  less  frequently. 

HEBE— JUVENTAS 

Daughter  of  Zeus  and  Hera,  cup-bearer  of  the  gods,  god* 
dess  of  eternal  youth,  and  identified  with  the  Roman  Juventas, 
Hebe  is  very  rare  on  gems.  In  art  she  is  generally  represented 
draped,  often  with  wings  and  pouring  nectar  from  a  vase.  A 
branch,  also,  is  a  frequent  attribute. 

As  the  wife  of  Herakles  she  was  worshipped  with  him, 
especially  at  Sikyon  and  Phleious,  sometimes  under  the  name 
of  Dia  or  of  Ganymeda,  an  identification  with  her  male  suc¬ 
cessor  in  office  of  divine  cup-bearer. 


GANYMEDES,  IRIS,  EOS,  METIIE  237 

GANYMEDES 
(PI.  X,  6) 

Ganymedes,  the  beautiful  shepherd  boy  who,  according  to 
the  Homeric  myth,  was  carried  off  by  Zeus  under  the  form 
of  an  eagle  to  succeed  Hebe  as  the  divine  cup-bearer  after  she 
had  become  the  bride  of  the  deified  Herakles,  is  represented 
not  very  infrequently  on  later  gems.  He  is  generally  shown 
as  a  naked  youth  with  the  eagle  descending  upon  him  or  bear¬ 
ing  him  away  or  else  drinking  from  a  cup  which  he  holds.  Some¬ 
times  he  carries  a  pedum,  sometimes  a  dog  or  one  of  his  flock 
is  beside  him  and  sometimes  he  wears  the  Phrygian  cap  to 
indicate  his  Trojan  origin. 


IRIS 

Greek  personification  of  the  rainbow  and  especial  mes¬ 
senger  of  Hera  and  sometimes  of  Zeus,  Iris  is  figured  in  ancient 
art  draped  and  with  wings;  occasionally,  also,  she  has  winged 
feet.  She  carries  the  caduceus  of  Hermes  and,  sometimes, 
a  vase. 

EOS— AURORA 

(PI.  VIII,  9.  See  PI.  XI,  24;  XIII,  15) 

Eos  is  usually  shown  on  late  gems,  either  in  a  chariot  or, 
winged  and  draped,  hovering  in  the  sky  or  moving  before  Ares. 
Sometimes  she  carries  a  torch  or  sprinkles  dew  from  a  vase. 
On  Etruscan  scarabs  a  winged  female  carrying  a  dead  hero 
is,  probably,  Eos  bearing  away  the  body  of  her  son,  Memnon, 
slain  before  Troy,  and  on  one  probable  picture  of  her  there  is 
a  serpent  engraved  in  the  field  of  the  gem. 

METHE 

This  deity,  who  presided  over  drunkenness  and  is  said  to 
have  been  engraved  on  the  signet  of  Kleopatra,  is  a  nude  female 
figure,  with  such  attributes  as  a  cup,  hydra,  thyrsos,  vine 
branch  or  grapes. 


238 


LESSER  AND  LATER  DEITIES 


PRIAPOS 
(PI.  XV,  4) 

The  god  of  fertility  and  generation  is  usually  pictured  as 
a  Herm  with  phallic  symbols  and  thyrsos,  club  or  sickle.  In 
early  art  various  ithyphallic  figures  may  represent  him. 

MOIRAI — PARCAS 
(PL  XIV,  3) 

The  Fates,  though  well  known  in  art,  are  not  much  in 
the  line  of  gem  subjects.  Little  was  to  be  gained  by  flattering 
or  striving  to  propitiate  such  inexorable  deities.  In  art  Klotho 
is  shown  spinning  the  thread  of  life,  Lachesis  marking  out  the 
destinies  of  men  on  a  globe,  and  Atropos  severing  the  thread 
with  her  shears,  showing  the  hour  on  a  sundial,  drawing  a 
lot  or  holding  scales.  Occasionally  they  have  wings  on  their 
heads. 

EUMENIDES— ERINYES 

The  Furies,  avengers  of  crime,  are  also  not  found  on  gems, 
except,  perhaps,  in  the  composition  of  some  hero-picture,  pos¬ 
sibly  with  Orestes.  In  such  a  role  the  Fury  might  be  difficult 
to  identify  except  from  the  context. 

In  early  art  they  were  representations  of  terror,  with  long 
robes  and  twining  serpents  for  hair.  Later,  they  were  softened 
into  beautiful  virgins,  with  or  without  snakes  about  their 
heads,  sometimes  with  wings  and  carrying  torches,  scourges  or 
sickles. 

MEDOUSA 

(PI.  V,  10,  22;  VI,  6?;  XI,  14;  XII,  9;  XVIII,  18;  XX,  8;  XXI,  4; 

XXII,  1;  XXIX,  21) 

The  figure  or  head  of  this  one  of  the  Gorgons  best  known 
in  art  was  always  considered  a  most  powerful  talisman  and 
appears  on  the  gems  of  all  periods;  often  together  with  other 
luck-bringing  types  and  emblems. 


ME  DO  USA,  HORAI 


239 


In  all  early  representations,  Phmnician,  archaic  Greek, 
and  Etruscan,  she  is  a  thing  of  horror  and  fear,  with  bristling 
serpent  hair,  distorted  face,  and,  often,  protruding  tongue. 
In  Phoenician  art  the  figure  is  usually  naked,  with  wings,  and 
often  with  a  second  pair  which  are  sometimes  attached  to  her 
legs.  On  archaic  Greek  and  Etruscan  gems,  she  is  robed, 
usually  with  wings  or  double  wings,  sometimes  brandishing 
serpents,  and,  once,  with  Herakles,  where  both  are  holding 
up  lions.  On  Etruscan  scarabs  she  is  also  pictured  being  slain 
by  Perseus  or  he  is  seen  bearing  the  severed  head.  In  early 
Roman  art  wre  find  usually  the  head,  either  in  the  hands  of 
Perseus  or  fixed  on  the  shield  or  breastplate  of  Athena  or  of 
some  hero. 

In  later  art  it  is  the  head  alone  that  is  a  favored  gem  pic¬ 
ture,  and  its  horrors  are  eliminated  with  the  exception  of  the 
serpent  hair  which  is,  often,  merely  suggested  in  a  way  to 
take  nothing  from  the  beauty  which  now  generally  charac¬ 
terizes  the  face.  On  these  heads,  also,  there  is  apt  to  be  a  pair 
of  wdngs. 

HORAI 

Varied  at  different  times  and  places  as  to  their  number 
and  names,  the  Hours  or  Seasons  were  attendants  of  Aphro¬ 
dite,  though  less  typically  so  than  were  the  Graces.  Origi¬ 
nally  they  were  Eunomia,  Eirene  and  Dike. 

Eirene,  goddess  of  peace  and  identified  wdth  the  Roman 
Pax,  w  as  also  worshipped  as  a  goddess  of  wealth  and  is  rep¬ 
resented  as  such,  writH  the  infant  Ploutos  in  her  arms.  Her 
attributes  are  the  cornucopia,  olive  branch,  ears  of  wheat, 
caduceus,  and,  on  one  gem,  a  sceptre.  Rarely  she  is  winged. 
As  Pax  she  carries  an  olive  branch. 

Astraia,  later  identified  writh  Dike  (Justice),  was  the 
Virgo  of  the  constellations.  Her  attributes  are  the  scales  or 
a  crown  of  stars.  A  harvest  season  sign,  she  often  carries  a 
W’heat-ear  on  gems  of  Imperial  times. 

There  were,  also,  four  Horai  who  represented  specifically 
the  four  seasons.  Of  these  the  best  knowm,  Chloris,  goddess  of 


240 


LESSER  AND  LATER  DEITIES 


spring  and  flowers,  was  identified  with  the  Roman  Flora.  If 
found  on  ancient  gems  she  would  probably  be  crowned  with 
flowers  or  holding  them  and  difficult  to  attribute  with  much 
certainty.  She  is  especially  dangerous,  as  being  more  or  less 
a  favorite  in  modern  work. 


JEQUXTAS 
(PI.  XXV,  16) 

This  Roman  personification  of  the  fairness  that  represents 
the  spirit  rather  than  the  letter  of  the  law,  needs  a  separate 
heading  as  being  not  infrequent  on  Roman  gems.  The  scales 
are  her  attribute. 

VERTUMNUS  AND  POMONA 

Latin  god  and  goddess  of  the  fruits  of  the  Earth,  who  pre¬ 
sided  over  the  changing  year.  I  have  found  neither  on  gems. 
Art  attributes  were  fruits  or  the  pruning  knife. 

SATURN 

(See  PI.  XXI,  19?) 

An  ancient  Italian  god  of  sowing  and  harvest,  later  identi¬ 
fied  with  the  Greek  Kronos.  The  sickle  was  his  symbol. 

JANUS 

(PI.  XXVIII,  13) 

This  Roman  god  appears  occasionally  on  the  gems  as  two 
bearded  heads  with  the  backs  combined,  as  in  the  Roman  ses. 
Bearded  double  masks,  back  to  back,  may  be  meant  to  rep¬ 
resent  him.  As  the  porter  of  the  gates  of  Heaven,  the  staff 
and  key  were  his  attributes.  In  very  late  art  he  is  sometimes 
shown  unbearded  and  in  one  hand  he  holds  the  number 
300  (CCC),  in  the  other  05  (LXV),  as  indicating  the  days  of 
the  year.  This,  however,  would  hardly  be  found  on  a  gem. 


VEIOVIS,  HERMAPHRODITOS,  DEA  ROMA  241 


VEIOV1S 

Also  an  old  Italian  deity,  early  forgotten  and  unlikely  on 
gems.  He  was  identified  with  Apollo,  Zeus  and,  later,  with 
Dis.  A  goat  was  sacrificed  to  him.  In  early  art  he  was  pic¬ 
tured  beardless  and  with  a  bunch  of  arrows,  which  was,  also, 
one  of  the  conventional  representations  of  a  thunderbolt,  but 
his  cult  seems  to  have  died  out  at  an  early  date. 

HERMAPHRODITOS 

The  bisexual  figure,  derived  etymologically  from  Hermes 
and  Aphrodite,  was  a  favorite  subject  in  later  art.  Artistically 
a  creation  of  fancy,  it  did  not  appear  before  the  fourth 
century  B.  C.,  was  connected  with  the  Dionysiac  and  Erotic 
cycles,  and  bore  their  attributes  rather  indiscriminately. 
Indicated  by  the  bosom  of  a  woman  and  masculine  genitals, 
the  type  appears  occasionally  on  gems. 

DEA  ROMA 
(PI.  XXV,  3) 

Foremost  in  frequency  in  gem  pictures  among  the  long 
list  of  Roman  personifications,  most  of  which  appear  seldom 
or  never  on  gems,  is  the  rather  popular  figure  of  the  World- 
conquering  city,  worshipped,  first,  in  the  second  century,  in 
Asia  Minor,  as  a  form  of  Tyche,  with  a  mural  crown  and 
various  attributes  of  power  and  prosperity.  Under  Augustus 
the  cult  in  many  Hellenic  cities  was  connected  with  that  of 
the  deified  Julius  Caesar  and  with  the  complimentary  worship 
of  the  Emperor.  She  seems  to  have  been  associated  with 
Venus  Genetrix,  and  a  double  temple  to  both  was  built  in 
Rome  by  Hadrian.  In  her  own  city  she  was  represented  as  a 
fully  draped  figure  with  helmet,  shield,  and  spear,  often  dif¬ 
ficult  to  distinguish  from  Minerva,  except  in  such  cases  as  on 
the  gem  where  the  shepherd  Faustulus  and  the  wolf  stand  be¬ 
fore  her.  On  Roman  coins  her  head  is  often  shown  with  a 
winged  helmet.  Other  city  types  appear  on  later  gems  and 


242 


LESSER  AND  LATER  DEITIES 


must  be  identified  when  found,  secundum  artem.  (See  PI. 
XXV,  21;  XXVIII,  20). 

LIBYA 

(PI.  XVIII,  23) 

This  personification  of  the  province  of  Africa  is  indicated 
by  the  elephant  skin  head-dress  with  tusks  and  trunk. 

/ETERNITAS 

This  personification  holds  in  her  hands  Sol  and  Luna.  It 
has  not  been  found  on  gems,  but  the  symbols  of  the  Sun  and 
Moon  were  figured  in  late,  especially  in  Oriental,  art,  as  typify¬ 
ing  eternity — that  is,  so  long  as  these  heavenly  bodies  shall 
endure. 

ANNONA  (YEAR’S  PRODUCE) 

The  patroness  of  corn  importation,  personified  at  a  rather 
late  date,  had  as  attributes  the  kalathos,  ears  of  wheat,  a  cornu¬ 
copia,  and  a  ship.  She  carried  a  figure  of  Roma  in  her  hand. 
I  have  seen  no  gems. 

CONCORDIA 

Symbolized  by  a  female  figure  with  a  veil,  this  personi¬ 
fication  of  internal  peace  was  worshipped  at  Rome  as  early 
as  367  B.  C.  She  was  invoked  together  with  Janus,  Salus, 
and  Pax,  and,  by  matrons,  with  Venus  and  Fortuna.  In 
Imperial  times  Concordia  Augusta  was  invoked  in  favor  of  the 
emperors’  matrimonial  happiness.  I  know  of  no  identified  gem 
representation. 

FAMA 

Fame,  reputation,  or  good  report,  was  personified  as  a 
figure  with  a  trumpet  and  spear.  I  know  of  no  ancient  gems. 

FIDES 

The  personification  of  good  faith  in  keeping  one’s  word  or 
oath  was  represented  with  outstretched  right  hand  and  a 


ROMAN  PERSONIFICATIONS 


243 


veiled  head.  Her  attributes  were  wheat-ears,  fruits,  the  turtle¬ 
dove,  and,  especially,  two  clasped  hands.  I  know  of  no  figure 
on  a  gem,  but  the  clasped  hands,  sometimes  holding  a  stalk 
of  wheat  between  them,  was  a  recognized  device  on  rings  sig¬ 
nalizing  a  marriage  or  betrothal.  (See  PI.  XXVIII,  16). 

FELICITAS 

This  personification  of  good  fortune,  a  draped  female 
figure,  bore  the  cornucopia  and  the  caduceus.  I  know  of  no 
gem  pictures. 


HILARITAS 

Mirth,  cheerfulness,  appears  personified  on  the  coins  of 
Hadrian,  with  a  cornucopia  and  a  palm,  and  with  children 
around  her.  Improbable  on  gems. 

HONOS 

The  personification  of  honor  was  a  youthful  figure  with 
long  locks,  a  chaplet  of  bay  leaves,  a  sceptre,  and  a  cornucopia. 
I  have  never  identified  this  on  a  gem. 

VIRTUS 

Warlike  courage,  to  which  Marcellus  first  raised  a  shrine 
in  Rome  and,  later,  Marius,  was  a  youthful  figure  with  long 
tresses  and  a  richly  ornamented  helmet.  Very  doubtful  on  gems. 

LIBERTAS 

The  personification  of  liberty  had  a  temple  on  the  Aven- 
tine.  She  was  sculptured  as  a  richly  dressed  matron,  with  a 
laurel  wreath.  After  the  death  of  Julius  Caesar,  she  was 
shown  with  a  dagger  and  a  liberty  cap,  a  short-lived  represen¬ 
tation,  though  possibly  preserved  secretly  by  members  of  the 
old  aristocratic  faction. 


244 


LESSER  AND  LATER  DEITIES 


PUDICITIA 

The  worship  of  modesty  and  chastity  was  a  cult  of  patri¬ 
cian  matrons  in  Rome,  certainly  as  early  as  the  fourth  century 
B.  C.  The  goddess  was  represented  as  a  draped  matron  con¬ 
cealing  her  right  hand  in  her  garment.  Later  she  fell  out  of 
favor  for  obvious  reasons,  but  the  cult  was  revived  in  Imperial 
times,  in  honor  of  some  of  the  empresses.  Doubtful  on  gems. 

SALTJS 

As  the  personification  of  health,  Salus  was  identified  with 
Hygeia  and  represented  similarly.  As  a  deity  personifying  the 
welfare  of  the  Roman  State  she  had  a  temple  on  the  Quirinal 
as  early  as  302  B.  C.,  where  she  was  probably  represented  in 
similar  form.  I  know  of  no  gems. 

SECURITAS 

The  personification  of  security  leans  on  a  column  with  her 
hand  to  her  head.  I  have  seen  no  gems. 

PIETAS 

Personification  of  domestic  affection;  she  had  a  temple  in 
Rome  at  least  as  early  as  181  B.  C.,  vowed  by  Acilius  Glabrio, 
where  she  was  shown  as  a  matron  strewing  incense  on  an  altar. 
Her  symbol  was  a  stork.  Doubtful  on  gems. 

PROVIDENTIA  DEORUM 

The  foreseeing  care  of  the  gods,  as  personified,  has  for 
attribute  a  bird  of  augury.  It  is  found,  I  think,  only  on  coins. 

SPES 

(PI.  XXV,  10;  XXVIII,  21) 

Spes  or  Hope,  especially  hope  for  the  blessings  of  a  fruit¬ 
ful  harvest  and,  in  later  times,  for  a  fruitful  marriage,  was 
a  goddess  of  the  future  invoked  at  marriages  and  births.  She 
had  several  temples  in  Rome  and,  contrary  to  most  of  these 


SPES,  PENATES 


245 


personifications,  is  found  on  a  few  of  our  gems.  A  youthful 
female  figure  in  a  long  robe  which  she  raises  slightly  with  her 
left  hand,  she  carries  in  the  right  a  bud.  On  one  gem,  instead 
of  the  typical  bud,  she  holds  a  small  figure  of  Bonus  Eventus 
with  a  patera  and  ears  of  wheat. 

Many  of  the  above  personifications,  together  with  others 
even  more  vague  and  less  familiar,  were,  naturally,  adaptable 
to  what  might  be  called  personal  cult-phases  inspired  by 
motives  of  Imperial  compliment.  Such  are  Spes  Augusta, 
Securitas  Augusta,  Providentia  Augusti,  Concordia  Exer- 
citium,  Fides  Cohortium,  Gloria  Exercitus,  Gloria  Saeculi, 
Gloria  Romanorum,  etc. 

I  have  given  the  attributes  stated  above,  mostly  from  coins 
or  statues  and  a  few  from  gems  which  have  been  satisfactorily 
identified,  but  there  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  all  of  these 
personifications  were  ever  conventionalized  in  exclusive  artistic 
forms.  An  artist  dealing  with  such  a  subject  might  well  have 
felt  at  liberty  to  express  it  in  any  way  that  might  seem  to  him 
satisfactory,  and  the  student  may  find  such  representations  in 
figures  that  are  puzzling  in  their  vague  approach  to  better 
recognized  types.  In  the  matter  of  attributes,  for  instance, 
the  cornucopia  belongs  to  most  of  them,  because  the  good 
qualities  and  satisfactory  relations  personified  in  such  deifica¬ 
tions  were  calculated  to  induce  prosperity  and  plenty.  Other 
attributes  are  apt  to  be  of  as  easy  interpretation,  save  in  rare 
cases,  like  that  of  the  raised  robe  that  distinguishes  Spes,  the 
reason  for  which  must  go  back  to  some  early  cult  idea  and  a 
resultant  type  statue  of  which  we  have  no  record. 

PENATES 

These  household  deities  of  the  Romans  do  not  seem  to  be 
pictured  on  gems.  Many  of  the  little  bronze  figures  of  them 
which  have  been  preserved  show  no  especial  distinguishing 
characteristics,  but  sometimes  they  were  represented  dancing 
and  holding  a  drinking  horn  to  symbolize  prosperity. 


246 


LESSER  AND  LATER  DEITIES 


GENII 

(PI.  XXIII,  9;  XXIV,  16) 

According  to  Italian  ideas,  every  locality  and  every  man 
had  its  or  his  genius  or  creator.  Genii  of  places  were  generally 
represented  as  serpents.  The  genius  of  the  Roman  People 
stood  in  the  Forum,  a  figure  of  a  bearded  man  with  a  diadem, 
cornucopia  and  sceptre.  The  genius  of  a  person  was  usually 
clothed  in  a  toga,  with  the  head  mantled,  and  bore  a  cornucopia 
and  patera.  We  may  also  sometimes  suspect  such  subjects  as 
the  genius  of  Mars  and  the  genii  of  the  various  emperors  which 
were  worshipped  and  which  appear  on  coins.  Wings  were 
often  added  to  these  figures,  but  the  cornucopia  and,  often,  the 
serpent  were  the  conventional  attributes.  Owing  to  uncertain¬ 
ties  of  identifications  they  may  appear  on  gems  more  frequently 
than  the  record  shows,  and  figures  of  youths  may  be  sometimes 
suspected  from  the  context  to  be  meant  to  be  genii. 

The  planetary  genii  shown  on  Gnostic  amulets  were 
creations  of  quite  a  different  kind  and  will  be  considered  in 
their  place. 

Of  the  foreign  Oriental  deities,  worshipped  through  the 
Roman  World  under  the  Empire,  some  have,  from  their  associa¬ 
tions,  been  treated  already.  The  rest  may  be  considered  here. 
There  were  a  great  number  of  these,  and  new  types  and  com¬ 
binations  may  always  be  looked  for.  Many  are  very  difficult 
to  name,  such  as  the  figure  covered  with  the  skin  of  a  fish  and 
carrying  a  basket,  found  on  a  gem  and  probably  Babylonian 
in  origin.  Combinations  of  Zeus  and  Baal  evolved  logically 
and  Tyche  Pantheios,  Minerva  Pantheia,  Bacchus  Pantheios 
and  other  Pantheistic  combinations  are  found,  leading  up  to 
the  idea  of  the  Abraxas  god  invented  by  Basileides. 

Of  those  that  are  shown  in  conventional  and  readily 
identifiable  forms,  by  far  the  most  common  is  Harpokrates. 


HARPOKRATES,  ISIS 


247 


HARPOKRATES— HORUS 
(PL  XV,  17;  XXI,  11;  XXIX,  20b,  26) 

This  Greek  adaptation  of  the  younger  Egyptian  Horus, 
son  of  Isis  and  Osiris,  was,  as  a  deity  of  early  vegetation,  some¬ 
times  identified  with  Priapos  and  even  with  Eros.  The  Egyptians 
represented  him  as  a  naked  boy  with  his  finger  on  his  mouth 
and,  from  a  misunderstanding  of  this  symbolism  expressing 
the  idea  of  infancy,  the  Greeks  made  their  Harpokrates  the 
god  of  silence  and  secrecy.  He  is  always  shown  with  his  finger 
to  his  lips,  holding  a  cornucopia  and  with  a  lotos  flower  on 
his  head  to  indicate  his  Isiac  relation. 

Figures  of  Horus,  according  to  the  Egyptian  type,  are 
common  on  Gnostic  gems,  a  naked  child  with  finger  to  his 
mouth  and  seated  on  a  lotos  flower  or  in  a  crescent  shaped 
boat.  Generally  he  carries  a  scourge,  and  various  symbols  and 
names  are  often  added,  but  the  identification  is  always  easy. 

Together  with  Horus  we  find  on  the  talismans  of  these 
sects  many  figures  taken  from  the  Egyptian  theogeny:  the 
jackal-headed  Anubis,  the  ass-headed  Typhon,  the  baboon  and 
ibis  of  Thoth,  and  all  manner  of  adaptations  and  combinations, 
each,  often,  unique  and  to  be  explained,  if  at  all,  only  on  its 
own  lines  (PI.  XXVI,  5;  XXIX,  28a). 

ISIS 

(PI.  XV,  11;  XXII,  9;  XXIII,  18) 

The  worship  of  this  Egyptian  goddess  of  procreation  and 
birth,  the  feminine  principle  in  nature,  shown  in  Egyptian  and 
Phoenician  art  with  a  cow’s  head  or  horns,  sometimes  with 
the  moon’s  orb  between  them,  and,  often,  with  the  child,  Horus, 
in  her  lap,  spread  to  Greece  and,  after  the  Second  Punic  War, 
obtained  a  foothold  in  Rome,  which  it  maintained  in  spite  of 
strong  governmental  opposition.  Under  the  Empire  it  was 
recognized  and  became  very  popular.  Isis  was  often  combined 
with  other  deities.  Her  attributes  were  the  lotos,  sistrum, 
cornucopia,  serpent,  wheat-ears,  vase,  and  moon  orb  set  between 


248 


LESSER  AND  LATER  DEITIES 


horns.  Her  figure  in  Roman  art  was  generally  fully  draped. 
Rarely,  as  a  patroness  of  navigation  (Isis  Pharia),  she  holds 
a  sail  and,  sometimes,  she  rides  the  dog  Sirius. 

MITHRAS  OR  MXTHRA 
(See  PI.  XXIX,  19) 

The  figure  of  Mithras  whose  individuality,  origin  and  cult 
have  been  discussed  in  our  historical  sketch,  was  convention¬ 
ally  represented  as  a  youth  in  Persian  costume  and  cap,  plung¬ 
ing  a  sword  into  a  bull.  Raised  and  lowered  torches  were  his 
emblems,  or  the  rising  and  setting  of  the  Sun  was  symbolized 
in  some  similar  way.  It  is  quite  probable  that  he  may  be 
figured  otherwise  than  as  given  above,  as  in  acts  or  postures 
representing  scenes  in  his  mystic  history,  but  the  veil  is  dark 
and  our  knowledge  incomplete. 

ABRAXAS  OR  ABRASAX 
(PI.  XXIX,  20a) 

The  conventional  figure  of  the  Abraxas  Pantheios,  common 
on  Gnostic  gems,  has  a  human  body  clad  in  a  corselet,  a  cock’s 
head  and  serpents  instead  of  legs.  On  one  arm  he  bears  a 
shield  and  in  his  hand  a  scourge,  rarely  a  dart  or  sword  and, 
on  one  gem,  a  mace.  On  a  few  the  head  is  a  hawk’s  or  lion’s; 
on  one,  an  ass’,  seeking  to  propitiate  Typhon  by  the  combina¬ 
tion,  and  various  attributes  are  sometimes  pictured  in  the 
field,  as  suited  to  a  Pantheios.  The  figure,  however,  is  always 
unmistakable. 

CHNUMIS  OR  CHNUBIS 
(PI.  XXIX,  22,  27) 

The  Agathodaimon  is  often  figured  on  Gnostic  gems  in 
the  form  of  a  serpent  with  a  lion’s  head  surrounded  by  rays, 
generally  seven  or  twelve. 


ASTRAL  POWERS,  BES,  MONSTERS  249 

ASTRAL  POWERS  OR  GNOSTIC  GENII 
(PL  XXIX,  24) 

These  representations,  generally  very  crudely  executed,  are 
quite  distinct  from  the  genii  of  Roman  mythology  and  rep¬ 
resent  the  powers  presiding  over  the  different  regions  of  the 
heavens  and  over  the  heavenly  bodies.  They  are  always  wing¬ 
ed,  generally  with  two  pairs  of  wings.  Sometimes  they  have 
a  bird’s  tail  and,  often,  four  arms.  They  usually  hold  sceptres 
and  often  the  sacramental  table  is  represented  resting  on  their 
heads.  The  extreme  roughness  of  much  of  the  work  on  these 
stones  makes  it  often  difficult  to  determine  just  what  is  meant 
to  be  pictured. 

BES— BESA 
(PL  VI,  4,  6?,  8,  10,  12) 

The  figure  of  this  Syro-Egyptian  deity  is  very  common  on 
Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scarabs.  The  Egyptian  type  is 
a  bandy-legged  dwarf,  the  Syrian  is  more  shapely.  In  both, 
however,  the  face  has  certain  demonic  characteristics.  There 
are  evident  associations  between  Bes  and  the  Greek  Herakles, 
and,  more  especially,  with  Seilenos,  so  that  representations  are 
apt  to  run  toward  either  of  these  characters.  The  Seilenos 
type  of  face  is  usually  given  him,  often  in  its  most  brutalized 
form.  Usually  he  is  shown  on  the  scarabs  fighting  with  an 
animal  or  animals  or  holding  them  up  in  his  hands  to  symbolize 
his  power.  Specific  provinces  of  Bes  are  to  guard  his  worship¬ 
ers  against  disease  and,  particularly,  to  aid  women,  to  whom 
he  ministers  in  childbirth  and,  hence,  to  protect  children. 


MONSTERS 


(PL  X,  7b,  9;  II,  1;  III,  lb,  9,  10;  IV,  IS;  V,  6,  12;  VI,  3;  VII,  7;  XIII,  22) 


Turning  back  to  the  realm  of  Greek  art,  its  monstrous 
creations,  many  of  which  are  familiar  to  us,  deserve,  never¬ 
theless,  a  few  words.  As  already  detailed,  all  manner  of  com¬ 
binations  were  used  for  signets,  nearly  always  with  a  more 


250 


MONSTERS 


or  less  definite  idea  of  invoking  magical  influence  or  aid  for 
the  wearer.  It  will  only  be  necessary  to  consider  specifically 
here  those  types  whose  mythological  origins  and  recognized 
names  have  made  them  conventional. 

SPHINX 

(PI.  IV,  16;  V.  14;  X,  18;  XVII,  17;  XIX,  18) 

The  sphinx,  derived  from  Egypt,  was  represented  in  the 
earliest  Greek  art  as  a  lion  with  a  woman's  head  and  usually 
winged.  Later,  it  sometimes  showed  the  woman’s  breasts,  and, 
still  later,  even  more  of  her  body.  A  serpent’s  tail  was 
occasionally  added. 

GRIFFIN 

(PI.  II,  2,  16;  III,  16;  VI,  12,  17;  VII,  6;  X,  8;  XXIX,  18) 

The  figure  of  this  monster,  Oriental  in  its  origin,  had  the 
body  of  a  lion  and  the  wings  and  head  of  an  eagle.  On  one 
very  early  gem  it  has  also  an  eagle’s  tail. 

KENT AUROI— CENTAURS 
(PI.  V,  4;  VII,  5;  XVII,  3;  XXV,  15) 

These  were  beings  with  horses’  bodies  and  legs  but  with  a 
man’s  body  from  the  waist  up  instead  of  a  neck.  On  archaic 
Greek,  Etruscan  and  Phoenician  gems  they  are  not  infrequently 
shown  as  men,  legs,  feet  and  all,  with  the  hinder  half  of  a 
horse  attached.  Cheiron  was  the  best  known,  as  the  tutor  of 
some  of  the  most  famous  heroes,  Asklepios  in  medicine,  Achil- 
leus  in  playing  the  lyre  &c.  Nessos,  who  was  slain  by  Hera- 
kles  while  trying  to  carry  away  Dejaneira,  is  also  pictured  in 
art. 

HIPPOKAMPS 
(PI.  XXV,  2) 

Creatures,  half  horse  and  half  fish. 


HARPIES,  SEIRENS,  CHXMAIRA,  RIVER-GODS  251 


HARPIES 

Originally  storm-demons  that  caused  men  to  disappear, 
they  were,  according  to  Hesiod,  winged  maidens  with  flowing 
hair.  Later  they  were  represented  as  half  bird,  half  maiden. 
Apparently  having  little  magic-working  power,  they  are  prob¬ 
ably  rarely  if  ever  found  on  gems  and,  when  occurrent,  would 
be  very  difficult  to  distinguish  from  some  other  forms,  especial¬ 
ly  those  of  seirens. 

SEIRENS 

(PI.  V,  5;  VIII,  6;  XIII,  16,  17) 

These  symbols  of  magic  beauty  and  the  power  of  song  are 
common  on  gems.  They  were  represented  as  birds  with  women’s 
heads  or  with  the  upper  part  of  a  winged  woman  set  on  bird’s 
legs. 

CHIMAIRA 

(PI.  Ill,  14;  XXVII,  15) 

This  monster,  destroyed  by  Bellerophon,  is  represented  as 
a  lion  with  a  goat’s  head  springing  from  its  back  and  a 
serpent  tail. 

RIVER-GODS  (ACHELOOS) 

(PI.  IV,  7;  X,  3;  XIII,  23;  XVIII,  24?;  XXV,  7) 

These  creatures  seem  to  have  taken  their  conventional 
form  of  a  man-headed  bull  from  the  numerous  self-transforma¬ 
tions  of  which  Acheloos,  god  of  the  river  that  ran  between 
iEtolia  and  Akarnania,  was  capable  and  to  which  he  resorted 
in  his  combat  with  Herakles.  Through  Sicily  and  the  Greek 
cities  of  Southern  Italy,  river-god  cults  were  especially  popular. 
They  are  also  represented  as  male  heads  with  bull’s  horns. 

PEGASOS 

(PI.  Ill,  11;  XIX,  18;  XXVI,  11) 

The  winged  horse,  born  of  Poseidon  and  Medousa.  Ac- 


252 


MONSTERS 


cording  to  the  Alexandrian  poets,  the  Hippokrene  spring  on 
Mt.  Helikon,  which  inspired  to  poesy,  rose  from  a  blow  of  his 
hoof. 

KERBEROS— CERBERUS 
(PI.  V,  9;  XXVII,  17) 

The  three-headed  watch-dog  of  the  Under-world. 

EARTH-GIANTS 

(PI.  XII,  21;  XXII,  11;  XXIII,  13) 

On  early  Greek  and  Etruscan  gems,  these  are  usually  rep¬ 
resented  as  nude,  wild  looking  warriors  hurling  huge  rocks, 
though,  even  then,  we  sometimes  find  the  serpent-legs  which 
characterize  them  in  later  times.  Rarely  they  have  wings. 
They  are  often  shown  being  conquered  by  some  god. 


CHAPTER  III 


HEROES  AND  THEIR  ATTRIBUTES 

Of  the  various  heroes  of  the  epic  cycles  shown  on  gems, 
some  are  difficult  or  impossible  to  identify.  It  is  not  always 
a  thing  to  be  positively  stated  whether  a  picture  of  some 
warrior  without  any  distinguishing  characteristic  is  meant  for 
a  specific  personage,  but,  in  such  cases,  the  original  meaning 
counts  for  little  and,  to  all  our  intents  and  purposes,  the  work 
is  simply  an  artistic  conception  of  daily  life. 

Greater  responsibility  and  much  greater  interest  attaches 
to  certain  figures  w7hich,  from  their  special  attributes  and  at¬ 
titudes,  as  well  as  from  the  similarity  of  repeated  types,  are 
evidently  meant  for  definite  personalities  but  which  seem  to 
carry  no  clear  means  of  attribution.  Such  is  the  kneeling 
figure  of  the  warrior  found  on  many  early  Italian  gems  and 
concerning  which  Dr.  Furtwangler  hazards  the  guesses  of 
Marcus  Curtius  and  Decius  Mus  (PI.  XVII,  8).  Neither  seems 
to  me  at  all  satisfying.  Surely  if  it  were  the  former,  the  horse 
wrould  be  shown  or  some  suggestion  of  the  plunge  or  the  fabled 
chasm  would  be  introduced,  as  they  are  in  other  gem  pictures. 
As  for  the  latter,  while  pictures  of  historic  individuals  and 
occurrences  are  rare  they  are  not  unknown  on  Roman  gems, 
but  any  representation  of  the  martyr-consul  would  surely  bear 
a  suggestion  of  the  peculiar  feature  of  his  sacrifice ;  the  cincture 
Gabinus.  These  figures  must  still  be  placed  in  a  class  where 
others  undoubtedly  fall;  heroes  of  some  one  of  the  many 
poems  of  antiquity  lost,  perhaps,  forever,  possibly  to  be  dis¬ 
covered  by  some  fortunate  antiquarian  or  archaeologist. 

On  many  Etruscan  scarabs  all  difficulties,  save  those  in- 

253 


254 


HEROES  AND  THEIR  ATTRIBUTES 


volved  in  Etruscan  epigraphy  and  their  torturing  of  Greek 
names,  are  fully  solved  by  the  habit  of  placing  in  the  field 
of  the  gem  the  name  of  the  hero  represented,  but  such  in¬ 
scriptions  have  not  infrequently  been  added  on  ancient  scarabs 
by  modern  forgers,  and  the  Etruscan  had  a  disturbing  habit  of 
naming,  quite  arbitrarily,  entirely  impersonal  figures. 

Known  Etruscan  forms  of  Greek  heroic  names,  bearing  in 
mind  the  fact  that  they  read  more  often  from  right  to  left  in 
the  impression,  are 


for  Herakles — Ercle  or  Hercle 
Kastor — Castur 
Polydeukes  (Pollux) — Pul- 
tuke 

Tydeus — Tute 
Amphiaraos — Amphtiare 
Polyneikes — Phulnice 
Adrastos — Atresthe 
Parthenopaios — Parthana- 
paes 

Ixion — Ichsiun 
Orestes — U  ruzthe 
Agamemnon — Akhmiem 

Aktaion- 


Achilleus — Achale,  Achele, 
Achile  or  Achle 
Odysseus — Ulusse,  Ulxe 
(or  Utuse?) 

Aias  (Ajax) — Ainas  or  with 
a  digamma  for  the  N 
Theseus — These 
Perseus — Pherse 
Peleus — Pele 

Klytaimnestra — Klutumus- 
thra 

Kyknos — Kukne 
Kapaneus — Kapne 
Ataiun 


Of  the  heroes  more  or  less  popular  on  gems,  first  and  fore¬ 
most  in  overwhelming  preponderance  is 


HERAKLES— HERCULES 

(PI.  Ill,  9;  IV,  7,  25;  V,  3,  10,  20,  24;  VII,  13;  IX,  9;  X,  17;  XI,  6,  21; 

XII,  4,  5,  12,  23?;  XIII,  2,  5,  9?,  12,  13;  XV,  18;  XVIII,  1; 

XX,  1,  7;  XXII,  13;  XXV,  7,  19;  XXVII,  11,  17) 

Greatest  of  all  the  hero-creations  of  Greek  fable  is  Hera¬ 
kles.  Always  a  figure  pre-eminently  muscular  and  powerful, 
in  early  art  he  is  often  unbearded,  in  later,  more  frequently  the 
reverse.  His  typical  attributes  are  the  bow,  club  and  lion’s 
skin,  the  last  two  dating  from  Peisander  of  Rhodes,  in  the 


HERAKLES 


255 


latter  half  of  the  seventh  century  B.  C.,  who  also  fixed  the 
number  of  the  “Labors”  at  twelve,  perhaps  in  imitation  of  the 
contests  of  Melkart,  the  Phoenician  Herakles,  with  the  twelve 
beasts  of  the  Zodiac.  The  Carthaginians  saw  in  him  this 
national  deity  and,  somewhat  Phoenicianized,  he  was  a  popular 
figure  on  their  scarabs.  As  a  child  he  was  sometimes  shown 
strangling  serpents  and,  in  Etruscan  art,  an  amphora  is  often 
pictured  with  him.  He  is  also  found  bringing  water  from  a 
spring,  catching  it  in  his  lion-skin  or  sailing  on  a  raft  buoyed 
up  by  amphoras.  Certainly  in  Italian  mythology  he  had,  together 
with  Seilenos,  some  control  over  springs  and  water,  especially 
hot  springs,  and  the  legends  of  his  voyage  across  the  sea  in 
the  bowl  of  the  Sun  may  be  indicated  on  certain  scarabs. 
Drunkenness,  too,  seems  to  be  associated  with  him  and  he  is 
often  shown  holding  a  wine  cup.  The  wild  olive  and  white 
poplar  were  his  sacred  trees,  the  cornucopia  was  sometimes 
given  him  as  to  a  luck-bringing  personage,  and  wild  boars  were 
his  sacrificial  animals.  In  Rome  he  was  worshipped  as  Mou- 
sagetes  ^Master  of  the  Muses)  and  on  late  gems  he  is  occasion¬ 
ally  shown  playing  a  lyre.  In  early  Italian  cults  he  seems  to 
have  been  connected  in  some  more  or  less  vague  way  with  the 
shepherd  hero,  Garanus,  the  Italian  conqueror  of  Cacus,  and 
with  the  deity,  Sancus  or  Dius  Fidius. 

Many  of  the  “Labors”  are  popular  on  gems,  the  first  perhaps 
most  so.  Given  in  order  they  are: 

1st:  The  conquest  of  the  Nemean  lion. 

2nd :  The  conquest  of  the  Lernian  hydra  or  water  drag¬ 
on  (Not  infrequent). 

3rd:  The  conquest  of  the  Erymanthian  boar  (Rare). 

4th:  The  capture  of  the  Kyryneian  hind  (I  have  not 
seen  this  on  gems  save  on  a  cameo  in  the  Berlin 
Museum). 

5th:  The  chase  of  the  Stymphalian  birds.  He  is  thus 
represented  shooting  at  them  with  his  bow. 

6th:  The  gaining  of  the  girdle  of  Hippolyte,  Queen  of 
the  Amazons  (I  have  not  found  it  on  gems). 

7th:  The  cleaning  of  the  Augeian  stables  t(I  have  not 


256 


HEROES  AND  THEIR  ATTRIBUTES 


found  it  on  gems  and  the  subject  is  an  improbable 
one). 

8th :  The  capture  of  the  Marathon  bull,  afterward  slain 
by  Theseus.  Herakles  is  pictured  carrying  a  bull 
on  his  shoulders. 

9th :  The  capture  of  the  man-eating  horses  of  Diomedes. 
Probably  shown  on  several  gems,  on  one  of  which 
horses  seem  to  be  eating  a  man.  Diomedes  was 
thrown  by  Herakles  to  his  own  man-eating  steeds. 

10th:  The  quest  of  the  oxen  of  Geryon.  (Not  pictured 
that  I  know  of,  though  many  adventures  were  in¬ 
cluded  in  this  labor,  especially  the  voyage  in  the 
Sun-bowl). 

11th:  The  quest  of  the  apples  of  the  Hesperides.  He  is 
thus  sometimes  shown  holding  an  apple  or  a  bough 
or  slaying  the  guardian  dragon. 

12th :  The  bringing  of  Cerberus  from  the  Under-world. 
(Not  rare  on  gems). 

Other  exploits  of  Herakles  found  in  gem  pictures  are  the 
killing  of  Kyknos  and  of  Antaios  (Herakles  is  shown  wrestling 
with  the  latter  and  lifting  him  from  the  ground),  also  his 
fight  with  the  river  god,  Acheloos,  usually  in  the  guise  of  a 
contest  with  a  man-headed  bull.  His  apotheosis  is  found  on 
one  Etruscan  scarab,  and  on  another  he  is  seated  on  his 
funeral  pyre. 

Still  further  adventures  may  be  found,  perhaps  some 
drawn  from  lost  poems.  An  Etruscan  scarab  in  the  collection 
of  W.  Gedney  Beatty  (PI.  XII,  4)  is  a  veritable  puzzle  in  the 
field  of  Herakles  myths. 

Omphale,  whom  Herakles  was  compelled  to  serve,  is  shown 
on  a  series  of  beautiful  gems  as  a  charming  female  figure,  nude, 
save  for  the  lion’s  skin,  and  bearing  the  hero’s  club.  (See  the 
Renaissance  copy,  PI.  XXX,  13).  He,  on  the  other  hand,  has 
been  pictured  in  art  with  the  distaff  of  the  Lydian  queen,  but 
I  have  never  seen  the  subject  on  an  ancient  gem  and  I  doubt 
its  occurrence,  as  not  being  in  accord  with  the  popular  line  of 
Herakles  representations. 


DIOSKOROI,  THESEUS 


257 


ANTAIOS 
(PI.  XXV,  19) 

Shown  only  in  pictures  of  his  being  strangled  by  Herakles,, 

KYKNOS 

(PI.  XI,  6) 

Shown  only  in  pictures  of  his  being  slain  by  Herakles. 

DIOSKOROI 
(PI.  VIII,  2;  XXIX,  1) 

Kastor  and  Polydeukes  (Pollux).  Heroes  of  the  young 
athletes  and  warriors,  and  guardians  of  seamen,  the  twins 
were  honored  from  an  early  date  at  Sparta,  Olympia,  Athens, 
and  many  other  places  in  Greece,  as  wrell  as  throughout  Italy, 
and,  especially,  at  Rome,  Ostia  and  Tusculum.  They  are  rep¬ 
resented  as  youths,  usually  with  oval  helmets  and  spears, 
while  two  stars,  either  on  the  helmets  or  in  the  field  of  the 
gem,  symbolize  their  place  in  the  heavens  as  the  constel¬ 
lation,  Gemini.  Often  their  horses,  Xanthos  and  Kullaros,  are 
shown  with  them.  A  picture  of  the  death  of  Kastor,  on  an 
Etruscan  scarab,  is  only  identifiable  by  the  inscription  (PI. 
XII,  11). 

Their  ancient  symbol  at  Sparta  was  two  parallel  beams 
joined  by  cross  pieces,  and  their  sea-sign  was  a  flame  on  the 
masthead. 

THESEUS 

(PI.  XI,  11;  XII,  23?;  XX,  14) 

An  athletic  figure,  but  slighter  than  Herakles,  beardless, 
sometimes  in  a  chlamys  and  petasos,  sometimes  a  lion’s  skin, 
but  more  frequently  nude.  The  sword  is  definitely  an  early 
attribute,  from  the  story  of  his  lifting  the  rock  to  obtain  his 
father’s  shoes  and  sword.  Therefore  this  act,  too,  often  ap¬ 
pears  in  his  pictures.  More  especially  on  later  gems  the  club 


258 


HEROES  AND  THEIR  ATTRIBUTES 


is  liis  weapon  and,  often,  lie  lias  both  sword  and  club.  His 
conquest  of  the  Minotaur  or  bull-headed  man  was  a  popular 
subject. 

PERSEUS 
(PI.  XI,  14;  XII,  9) 

A  common  figure  on  gems,  often  shown  killing  Medousa  or 
holding  the  head  in  his  hand.  Other  attributes  are  the  sickle¬ 
shaped  sword,  the  winged  sandals  of  Hermes,  and  the  helmet 
of  Hades,  usually  pictured  with  the  wings  and  head  of  a  bird. 

AKTAION 

(PI.  XII,  20;  XXIV,  18) 

Shown  either  as  a  man  attacked  by  dogs  or,  sometimes, 
as  peering  over  a  rock  at  Artemis  and  with  the  stag’s  horns 
already  sprouting  from  his  head.  These  representations  of  his 
crime  and  its  punishment  date  only  from  Hellenistic  times. 
In  early  Etruscan  art,  for  instance,  he  is  pictured  as  a  hunter 
with  his  dog. 

ORPHEUS 

A  rarer  subject  than  those  above  described,  in  earlier  art 
he  appears  wearing  a  long  robe,  though  his  Hellenic  character 
is  preserved.  Later,  he  became  Orientalized  and  was  given  the 
Phrygian  garb.  His  attribute  is  the  lyre. 

MELEAGROS— MELEAGER 

Shown  as  hunter,  often  with  a  dog  and  with  the  Kalydonian 
boar’s  head  as  his  attribute. 

BELLEROPHON 
(PI.  XXVII,  15) 

A  warrior  mounted  on  the  winged  horse,  Pegasos,  and, 
usually,  attacking  the  Chimaira. 


DANAE,  ORESTES  259 

DANAE 
(PI.  VIII,  12) 

Pictured  as  a  maiden  receiving  the  shower  of  gold  in  which 
Zeus  descended  on  her.  The  falling  gold  is  not  always  specific¬ 
ally  shown,  but  she  expresses  the  idea  by  her  upward  look  or 
by  holding  out  her  robe  as  if  to  catch  the  blessing  of  the  divine 
favor. 

ATALANTE 

Also  rare.  She  has  no  specific  attribute,  though  we  might 
expect  the  Kalydonian  boar’s  head  and  skin,  from  the  Arkadian 
legend  or,  from  the  Boeotian,  the  golden  apple  she  stopped 
to  pick  up  in  the  race  with  Hippomenes. 

HYAKINTHOS— HYACINTHUS 
(PI.  X,  15d?;XII,  18) 

Shown  on  one  Etruscan  scarab,  as  a  youth  bending  over 
a  discus,  with  blood  dropping  from  his  head. 

ORESTES 
(PI.  XVII,  23?) 

No  especial  attribute.  On  one  gem  he  is  pictured  a  prison¬ 
er  before  Iphigeneia  at  the  shrine  of  the  Tauric  Artemis.  He 
may  be  shown  slaying  a  woman  (Klytaimnestra),  where  a  Fury 
is  introduced  in  the  scene  to  indicate  that  it  is  a  murder  rather 
than  a  sacrifice.  He  might,  also,  be  shown  pursued  by  the 
Furies,  together  with  Pylades  or,  with  Elektra,  at  the  tomb  of 
Agamemnon. 

KLYTAIMNESTRA  AND  ELEKTRA 


As  above. 


JASON 


Usually  represented  beside  the  prow  of  a  ship  and,  on  one 


260 


HEROES  AND  THEIR  ATTRIBUTES 


gem,  together  with  Medeia,  taking  the  golden  fleece  from  the 
tree. 

MEDEIA 

Shown  with  a  child  or  children. 

ARGOS 
(PI.  XVII,  16) 

Shown  building  the  ship,  Argo. 

IKAROS  AND  DAIDALOS 
(PI.  XIII,  14?) 

The  former  is  pictured  on  one  gem  receiving  one  of  the 
wings  just  fashioned  by  his  father,  Daidalos,  or,  again,  as  a 
youth  equipped  with  wings.  Daidalos  is  shown  in  the  same 
pictures  as  an  old  man,  sometimes  as  a  smaller  figure,  possibly 
to  suggest  the  idea  of  a  magic  working  gnome. 

T ANTAL OS 
(PI.  XII,  17) 

Rare.  Probably  shown  on  two  Etruscan  scarabs  as  a  man 
bending  over  flowing  water  or  an  amphora  as  if  to  drink.  The 
inscription  on  one  of  these  has  been  read,  “Taitle.” 

XXION 
(PI.  XII,  16) 

Rare.  I  know  of  one  gem,  an  Etruscan  scarab,  which  rep¬ 
resents  him  bound  to  his  wheel. 

K  ADM  OS 
(PL  X,  12;  XII,  22) 

Shown  as  a  warrior  contending  with  a  serpent  and  rather 
common  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  or  with  an  amphora  at  the 
spring. 


PROMETHEUS,  OIDIPOUS 


2G1 


LEBA 

(PI.  XIX,  13?) 

Pictured  as  a  nude  figure  with  Zeus  in  the  form  of  a  swan 
and  not  rare  on  ancient  gems.  The  more  pornographic  represen¬ 
tations  which  we  find  quite  commonly  are  generally  works  of 
the  eighteenth  and  nineteenth  centuries. 

PASIPHAE 

She  may  be  pictured  rarely.  One  gem  showing  a  half 
draped  woman  beside  a  cow  or  bull  has  been  thus  identified 
speculatively. 


PROMETHEUS 
(PI.  Ill,  17a;  XVII,  14) 

Not  an  unusual  subject  on  gems,  he  is  pictured  from  early 
times  bound  to  the  rock,  usually  with  the  eagle  preying  on 
his  liver.  Also  he  appears  on  a  series  of  gems  as  a  magician 
at  work  on  the  figure  of  a  man. 

OIDIPOUS— CEDIPUS 
(PI.  XVII,  17) 

Pictured  not  uncommonly  either  propounding  his  riddle 
to  the  Sphinx  or  killing  her. 

TITYOS 
(PI.  IV,  2) 

He  is  shown  on  Etruscan  scarabs  pierced  by  the  arrow  of 
Apollo.  I  know  of  no  gem  which  shows  him  being  preyed 
upon  by  the  two  vultures  of  the  fable,  the  only  sure  means 
of  distinguishing  such  a  representation  from  that  of  Prome¬ 
theus, 


262 


HEROES  AND  THEIR  ATTRIBUTES 


ORTHRYADES 
(PI.  XVII,  5) 

His  is  the  not  uncommon  picture  of  a  dying  hero  writing 
on  a  shield  to  proclaim  the  Spartan  victory  over  the  Argives 
at  Thyrea. 

ACHILLEUS 

(PL  XI,  4,  7,  8?,  15,  17?;  XIII,  20,  24;  XVII,  3,  13;  XX,  15;  XXV,  14) 

One  of  the  most  widely  pictured  types  of  the  Trojan  War 
cycle,  he  is  to  be  distinguished  on  gems  only  as  he  appears  in 
some  one  of  the  scenes  from  his  life.  He  is  shown  beardless, 
with  his  arms  beside  him,  meditating  in  his  tent  or  receiving 
the  new  arms  brought  him  by  Thetis.  Also  he  appears  playing 
a  lyre  or,  as  a  boy,  being  taught  to  play  on  it  by  the  centaur, 
Clieiron.  Sometimes  he  is  supporting  the  dying  Amazon  queen, 
Penthesileia,  and  he  is  also  found  in  his  chariot  with  the  body 
of  Hektor  dragged  behind.  Priamos,  too,  is  occasionally  shown 
kneeling  before  him  and  begging  for  the  surrender  of  Hektor’s 
body.  Lastly,  on  a  number  of  gems,  he  appears  with  his  heel 
pierced  by  the  arrow  of  Paris  which  is  to  cause  his  death. 
Undoubtedly  other  hero-pictures  show  him  where,  however, 
the  accuracy  of  the  attribution  begins  to  be  more  or  less  doubt¬ 
ful. 


THETIS 

Probably  shown  on  early  gems  mounted  on  a  sea  monster. 
Later  and  rarely,  she  is  pictured  bringing  the  arms  made 
by  Hephaistos  for  her  son,  Achilleus. 

PRIAMOS— PRIAM 

Shown  usually  as  an  old  man,  a  suppliant  before  Achil¬ 
leus;  occasionally,  in  the  scene  of  his  death  at  the  hands  of 
Neoptolemos  and,  on  one  gem,  with  Hermes,  bringing  home 
the  body  of  Hektor. 


PENTHESILEIA,  PHILOKTETES 


263 


PENTHESILEIA 

(PL  XI,  15) 

Shown  as  the  Amazon  queen  overcome  by  Achilleus.  Her 
attribute  is  the  double  ax  of  the  Amazons.  The  Amazon  shield, 
variedly  crescent  shaped,  does  not  appear  on  early  gems  I  have 
seen  but  might  readily  be  found  on  late  examples. 

HEKTOR 

Identifiable  in  pictures  representing  his  parting  from  An¬ 
dromache  and  the  infant  Astyanax,  also  as  dead  and  drawn 
behind  the  chariot  of  Achilleus  or  being  brought  back  to  Troy 
by  Priamos  and  Hermes. 

ANDROMACHE 

Only  with  Hektor  as  above. 

PHILOKTETES 
(PL  IX,  1;  XIII,  21;  XXV,  17) 

A  very  popular  gem  subject.  Usually  the  bow  and  arrows 
of  Herakles  and  the  serpent  that  stung  his  foot  serve  to  identify 
him  and  he  is  often  shown  on  the  island  of  Lemnos,  either  nurs¬ 
ing  his  wounded  foot,  fanning  the  flies  from  it  with  a  bird’s 
wing  or  limping  with  the  aid  of  a  staff.  In  certain  group 
pictures  the  warrior  holding  out  his  foot  to  be  treated  by 
Machaon  is,  doubtless,  he. 

MACHAON 
(Pl.  XXV,  17) 

The  surgeon  of  the  Greeks  before  Troy  is  pictured  not  very 
commonly,  usually  treating  the  foot  of  Philoktetes  or,  per¬ 
haps,  in  scenes  where  a  warrior  seems  to  be  taking  care  of  a 
wounded  comrade. 


264 


HEROES  AND  THEIR  ATTRIBUTES 


ODYSSEUS— ULYSSES 
(PL  IX,  7;  XIV,  10;  XVIII,  2;  XXV,  8) 

One  of  the  most  popular  of  the  hero  types,  as  the  embodi¬ 
ment  of  diplomacy  and  cunning.  He  is  shown  bearded,  either 
with  the  semi-oval  cap  of  a  sailor  and  often  a  staff  and  being 
recognized  by  the  dog,  Argos,  or  as  a  warrior,  aiding  Diomedes 
to  steal  the  Palladium  or,  again,  in  either  character,  seated  and 
pondering  over  some  plan.  Other  pictures  are  less  certain, 
though  on  one  gem  he  seems  to  be  slaying  Doion,  on  another 
offering  a  wine  cup,  presumably  to  Polyphemos,  on  a  third 
ploughing,  while  Palamedes  lays  his  child  before  him  in  the 
furrow,  and  on  a  fourth  inspecting  the  arms  of  Achilleus  which 
wTere  awarded  him  after  that  hero’s  death.  On  Etruscan  scarabs 
he  is  found  with  the  sack  of  Aiolos  or,  sometimes,  sacrificing 
a  ram,  preparatory  to  his  descent  into  the  Under- world. 

DIOMEDES 

(PI.  XX,  5;  XXV,  17)  (PI.  IV,  5) 

Also  a  popular  figure,  though  not  to  the  same  extent. 
Usually  shown  as  a  beardless  warrior  with  the  Palladium,  often 
in  company  with  Odysseus.  Once  he  is  pictured  with  Athena 
in  his  chariot,  and  the  third  warrior  in  the  Machaon-Philok- 
tetes  scenes  is  doubtless  he,  since  he  went  to  Lemnos  to  bring 
the  wounded  hero  to  Troy  that  the  magic  arrows  might  effect 
its  capture.  In  the  fighting  and  camp  scenes  his  identity  can 
only  be  guessed.  He  may  be  shown,  according  to  Furtwangler, 
as  a  hero  drawing  an  arrow  from  his  foot,  as  indication  of 
his  surviving  the  wound,  unlike  Achilleus. 

Diomedes,  son  of  Ares  and  Kyrene,  is  pictured  being 
devoured  by  his  man-eating  horses  to  whom  Herakles  threw 
him. 

AGAMEMNON 

Either  rare  or  of  doubtful  identification  on  gems. 


AIAS,  PATROKLOS 
MENELAOS 


265 


(PL  V,  8) 

The  same  comment  may  be  made,  except  where  he  is  car¬ 
rying  the  naked  corpse  of  Patroklos. 

AIAS— AJAX 

(PL  XI,  7;  XII,  15;  XVII,  13,  24?;  XXV,  1,  20) 

Again  a  rather  popular  figure.  A  bearded  warrior,  he  is 
generally  pictured  carrying  the  body  of  Achilleus,  defending 
that  of  Patroklos,  tearing  Kassandra  from  the  statue  of 
Athena,  looking  at  the  arms  of  Achilleus,  seated  by  the  head 
of  an  animal  he  has  torn  to  pieces  in  his  madness,  slaying  him¬ 
self,  and,  perhaps,  in  other  scenes  from  the  Iliad. 

PATROKLOS 


(PL  V,  8;  XI,  8?,  17?) 

Shown  as  a  fallen  hero  with  the  battle  raging  over  him,  or 
as  a  naked  corpse  on  the  shoulders  of  Menelaos;  also,  on  one 
gem,  as  being  halted  by  Apollo  before  the  gate  of  Troy.  His 
borrowing  the  arms  of  Achilleus  may  be  the  subject  of  one  gem, 
and  his  parting  from  him,  of  another. 

NEOPTOLEMOS 

Not  very  common.  Usually  shown  sacrificing  Polyxene 
or  killing  the  aged  Priam. 

POLYXENE 

Rather  rare.  Shown  as  above. 

KASSANDRA 

(PL  XVI,  5?;  XVIII,  4;  XXV,  20) 

Much  more  common.  Shown  sitting  before  the  Pal¬ 
ladium,  embracing  it  for  protection  or  being  torn  away  by  Aias. 


266 


HEROES  AND  THEIR  ATTRIBUTES 


There  is  also  a  series  of  female  heads  which,  either  from  the 
thoughtful  expression,  the  olive  wreath  or  the  serpent  in  the 
field,  are  supposed  to  be  that  of  the  Trojan  prophetess. 

PARIS 

(Pi.  XI,  5?;  XII,  14) 

Not  infrequent.  Usually  pictured  as  a  beautiful  youth 
in  a  Phrygian  cap.  On  Etruscan  scarabs  he  is  shown  bending 
his  bow  or  drawing  an  arrow  from  his  quiver.  His  judgment 
of  the  rival  beauties  of  the  three  goddesses  occurs  on  two 
gems,  Hermes  also  being  present.  It  may  be  well  to  remember 
that  this  is  pre-eminently  the  kind  of  picture  that  would  be 
popular  with  modern  imitators. 

LAOKOON 

(PI.  XVII,  6) 

Rare.  Shown  with  his  two  sons  attacked  by  the  serpents. 
Also  frequent  in  modern  work. 

AINEIAS— iENEAS 

Shown  carrying  Anchises  from  the  sack  of  Troy  and, 
usually,  with  the  boy  Askanios  beside  him. 

ANCHISES  AND  ASKANIOS 

As  above. 

KAPANEUS 
(PI.  XI,  9,  20;  XVII,  4) 

By  far  the  commonest  of  the  heroes  of  the  Theban  cycle, 
especially  on  Etruscan  and  early  Roman  gems.  He  is  seen 
stricken  by  the  thunderbolt,  often  falling  from  the  ladder  by 
which  he  has  sought  to  mount  the  wall,  and,  also,  bearing  away 
half  a  gate. 


TYDEUS,  ROMULUS  AND  REMUS 

ETEOKLES  AND  POLYNEIKES 
(PI.  XI,  13) 


267 


Rare  and  only  identifiable  when  pictured  killing  each 
other  or  when  named. 

TYDEUS 

(PI.  XI,  12,  13;  XII,  3) 

Not  rare  on  scarabs  but  practically  unidentifiable  except 
when  his  name  is  added. 

AMPHIARIOS,  ADRASTOS  AND  PARTHENOPAIOS 
(PI.  XI,  13) 

These  heroes,  also,  can  only  be  identified  when  named. 

ROMULUS  AND  REMUS 
(PI.  XXV,  3) 

Of  Roman  hero  types,  these  only  can  be  identified  as  at 
all  common.  They  are  shown  as  infants  being  suckled  by  the 
she-wolf.  Often  the  shepherd,  Faustulus,  stands  near,  and  Roma 
or  Mars  may  also  be  added  to  the  picture.  There  are  many 
forgeries  of  the  she-wolf  and  the  twins  alone,  and  the  gems 
where  her  head  is  not  turned  toward  them  are  all  almost  surely 
false,  since  these  are  generally  copied  from  the  group  in  the 
Capitol  to  which  the  twins  were  added  in  modern  times. 

FAUSTULUS 
(PI.  XXV,  3) 

Shown  as  a  shepherd  as  above. 

VIRBIUS  (OR  DIANUS) 

(PI.  XVII,  9) 

The  first  Rex  Nemorensis,  or,  perhaps,  the  early  male 


268 


HEROES  AND  THEIR  ATTRIBUTES 


counterpart  of  the  Diana  Nemorensis,  is  probably  pictured  on 
several  early  Roman  gems  which  show  a  man  with  a  stag  or 
preparing  to  sacrifice  it. 


HORATII 


The  three  Horatii  may  be  pictured  on  certain  early 
Roman  gems  as  three  heroes  armed  in  Italian  fashion,  but 
they  have  not  been  surely  identified. 


MARCUS  CURTIUS 


(PL  XVIII,  3) 


Shown  as  a  warrior  falling  from  a  horse  that  seems  to  be 
stumbling  or  plunging  forward,  as  if  into  the  Curtian  chasm. 


MUCIUS  SC/EVOLA 


Common  enough  on  forged  gems.  I  have,  however,  seen 
one  picture  of  a  Roman  hero  thrusting  his  hand  into  an  altar 
flame  which  seems  to  me  genuine.  Though  the  Roman  heroic 
types  are,  doubtless,  like  historical  subjects,  very  rare,  this 
would  certainly  be  the  most  natural  signet  device  for  one  of 
the  Mucian  gens  who  where  numerous  and  prominent  in  Roman 
history. 

It  is  probable  that  other  heroes  are  occasionally  pictured, 
but  I  think  I  have  given  those  that  are  at  all  common  or  that 
we  can  hope  to  identify. 


AMAZONS 


These  may  also  be  included  under  this  head.  They  are 
shown  as  female  warriors  contending  with  Greeks.  Where 
attributes  occur  they  are  the  double  ax  or  the  Amazon  shield, 


either  crescent  shaped  or  like  Fig.  28.  Em¬ 
presses  and  mistresses  of  emperors  were  some¬ 
times  pictured  as  Amazons  on  late  gems. 


Fig.  38. 


PART  III 


TECHNIQUE— MATERIALS— HISTORICAL  AND 
MYTHOLOGICAL  SIGNETS 


CHAPTER  I 


TOOLS  AND  TECHNICAL  METHODS  OF  GEM 
ENGRAVING 

What  is,  perhaps,  the  earliest  notice  of  the  method  of 
cutting  intaglio  designs  in  stone  is  found  in  Herodotus  (VII, 
69),  who  writes  of  the  arrows  of  the  Ethiopians  as  being 
“Tipped  with  a  stone  made  sharp  and  with  which  (or  thus)  they 
engrave  their  seals.”  This  has  been  construed  by  King  and 
others  as  meaning  that  the  intaglios  were  scratched  in  with  the 
point  of  the  arrow,  but  the  translation  is  rather  uncertain  in 
view  of  the  fact  that  the  Greek  admits  of  both  the  readings 
given  above.  We  know,  however,  that  many  stones  were  cut 
with  signet  devices  by  having  the  pictures  scratched  into  them 
by  a  sharp  point  of  some  harder  substance  held  in  the  hand 
of  the  engraver.  In  Minoan  and  Mycenaean  times  the  softer 
materials  were  generally  engraved  in  this  way,  and  the  signets 
of  the  Greek  Middle  Ages  and  the  Melian  “Island  stones”  of 
the  budding  revival  are,  for  the  most  part,  examples  of  such 
workmanship. 

With  the  discovery  and  adaptation  of  harder  materials 
in  more  civilized  communities,  the  possibilities  of  such  an  in¬ 
strument  were  greatly  increased,  and  we  find  it  referred  to  as 
“adamas”  in  Jeremiah,  XVII.  Adamas  has  come  to  be  loosely 
translated,  diamond,  and  the  corresponding  tool  of  modern 
times  is  called  the  diamond-point,  a  sharp  splinter  of  that  gem 
set  in  a  handle.  Etymologically,  however,  the  term,  adamas, 
meant  merely  a  superlatively  hard  substance,  and  it  is  more 
than  doubtful  if  the  true  diamond  was  known  to  the  ancients. 
The  consensus  of  the  best  opinions  is  that  the  adamas,  of  which 
Pliny  says  there  were  six  kinds,  was  a  variety  of  corundum, 
probably  our  white  sapphire. 


271 


272 


TOOLS  AND  TECHNICAL  METHODS 


On  the  harder  gems;  sard,  carnelian,  chalcedony,  jasper, 
etc.,  this  early  method  of  scratching  in  designs  was  laborious 
and  ineffective.  Even  on  the  softer  stones  it  is  not  co-incident 
with  fine  work,  and,  with  the  revival  of  art  and  the  perfection 
of  wheel-technique  to  be  described  later,  it  is  probable  that  the 
point  was  seldom  used  on  stones  as  hard  as  quartz.  King  and 
many  writers  of  the  last  century  hold  the  contrary  of  this  and 
exaggerate  the  importance  of  indications  of  “diamond-point” 
work  as  being  one  of  the  best  evidences  of  antiquity,  but,  con¬ 
sidering  all  the  signs  and  arguments,  it  does  not  seem  probable 
that  much  use  of  this  tool  was  made  in  engraving  the  harder 
gem  substances  before  Graeco-Roman  times,  and  hardly  any 
before  those  of  Alexander.  Then  it  was  undoubtedly  employed, 
occasionally,  as  a  finishing  instrument  for  minute  details 
and  fine,  sharp  lines. 

It  was  Natter  who,  in  the  early  part  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  announced  the  then  current  opinion  that  “The  ex¬ 
tensive  use  of  the  diamond-point  is  the  grand  distinction  be¬ 
tween  the  antique  and  the  modern  art” ;  and  Sirletti,  who  died 
at  Rome  in  1737,  had  already  employed  that  instrument  at  the 
suggestion,  says  Gori,  of  Baron  Stosch  and,  doubtless,  with  an 
eye  to  establishing  the  genuineness  of  his  forgeries.  Diamond- 
point  work  soon  became  the  desiderata  of  the  collectors,  and 
the  engravers  naturally  did  their  best  to  meet  the  demand. 

Along  with  the  scratched-in  work  on  soft  stones,  there  is 
also  evidence  on  such  gems,  both  in  early  and  late  times,  of 
the  use  of  a  rotating  drill,  also,  probably,  held  in  the  hand. 
Large  depressions  were  thus  sunk  in  the  stone,  to  be  finished 
off  with  pointed  instruments,  but  whether  these  hand-drills 
were  tipped  with  stone  or  metal  is  a  matter  of  conjecture  as, 
also,  whether  any  hard  powder  was  used  as  a  cutting  medium, 
though  in  the  periods  when  such  a  material  was  known  and 
utilized  in  the  wheel-work  on  hard  gems  it  would  be  remark¬ 
able  if  its  efficacy  were  ignored  in  any  case  where  it  would 
be  an  aid. 

This  brings  us  to  the  overwhelmingly  prevalent  method  of 
gem-engraving,  not  only  employed  on  the  best  work  of  the  best 


DRILL,  WHEEL,  CUTTING  MEDIUM 


273 


period  but  also  on  the  hard  quartzes  of  the  Minoan  age  and, 
down  to  the  present  time,  whenever  and  wherever  intaglio  gems 
have  been  cut  in  such  material.  This  is  the  use  of  metal  drills, 
generally  with  more  or  less  rounded  heads,  tubular  drills,  and 
disks,  all  of  which  are  caused  to  revolve  rapidly  by  means  of 
some  rotating  mechanism  and  which  cut  into  the  stone,  not 
by  means  of  their  own  hardness,  for  they  are  comparatively 
soft  metal,  but  by  rubbing  in  a  medium  composed  of  some  kind 
of  powdered  emery  mixed  with  oil  which  grinds  out  the  hardest 
quartz  with  remarkable  rapidity.  The  circular  disks  of  dif¬ 
ferent  sizes  and  fineness,  governed  by  such  a  rotating  mechanism, 
have  given  the  name  of  wheel-engraving  to  this  kind  of  work, 
and  the  best  opinions  of  today  attribute  to  it  the  possibility 
of  a  delicacy  of  line  for  which  to  King  and  his  fore-writers  the 
diamond  point  had  seemed  an  absolute  requisite.  Furtwangler 
maintains  that  even  the  finest  lines  of  Dexamenos  are  executed 
by  this  instrument  and  points  out,  as  the  means  of  recognizing 
its  agency,  that  the  ends  of  these  are  never  sharp  but  always 
somewhat  rounded,  a  feature  which  imparts  to  the  picture  a 
softness  and  delicacy  foreign  to  the  effect  of  the  sharp  lines 
of  the  diamond-point,  so  often  used  by  the  Graeco-Roman  gem- 
engravers  in  finishing  their  work,  at  a  time  when  contrasts  in 
technique  on  the  same  gem  were  considered  good  art.  The 
tubular  drill  was  probably  used  to  cut  circles  and  certain 
curves. 

The  powder  employed  for  the  cutting  by  the  early  artists, 
whose  instruments  were  of  soft  metal,  like  ours,  came  origi¬ 
nally  from  the  island  of  Naxos  and  was  a  kind  of  emery  con¬ 
taining  some  iron,  which  is  still  imported  from  the  same  place 
for  similar  uses.  Pliny  states  (XXXVI,  10)  that  the  use 
of  Naxian  stone  was  superseded  in  later  times  by  that  of  a 
similar  substance  found  in  Armenia. 

With  the  drills  or  disks  of  different  sizes,  then,  the  larger 
depressions  were  sunk  in  the  stone,  overlapping  where  neces¬ 
sary,  and  the  finishing  was  done  with  the  fine  disks,  though 
in  the  class  of  late  Etruscan  gems  which  I  have  referred  to  as 
drill-work  scarabs  there  is  little  or  no  evidence  of  wheel- 


274 


TOOLS  AND  TECHNICAL  METHODS 


work,  and  the  whole  design  seems  to  have  been  wrought  by  a 
combination  of  drilled  out  depressions.  Today  the  different 
wheel-disks  seem  to  suffice  for  the  greater  part  of  the  work, 
and  the  drill  proper  is  little  used.  It  is  probable  that  in  early 
times,  and  we  know  that  in  Hellenistic,  some  sort  of  more  or 
less  sketchy  design  was  first  scratched  in  with  the  diamond- 
point  on  the  polished  stone,  to  be,  of  course,  obliterated  in  the 
finished  work.  The  custom  now  is  to  make  the  preliminary 
outline  sketch  on,  not  in,  the  stone  with  a  copper,  brass  or 
silver  point,  the  polish  being  first  slightly  dulled,  or,  again, 
the  surface  is  sometimes  covered  with  a  wrash  and  the  sketch 
drawn  with  an  ordinary  pencil. 

As  for  the  mechanism  by  which  the  drill  and  wheel  were 
made  to  revolve  we  have  little  definite  evidence.  Today  it  is 
done  by  a  foot  or  electric  motor  lathe,  the  tools,  as  needed, 
being  set  firmly  in  the  mandril.  The  gem,  fixed  in  a  sort  of 
handle,  is  held  against  the  cutting  edge  and  moved  as  the 
work  requires,  while  the  rapidly  whirling  tool  rubs  the  oil  and 
emery  into  the  stone,  biting  away  its  substance  until  the  pic¬ 
ture  takes  shape.  This  lathe,  of  course,  has  the  advantage  of 
leaving  both  the  workman’s  hands  free. 

What  the  ancients  used  instead  of  the  inventions  of  modern 
times,  we  are  unable  to  picture  clearly,  though  we  know  they 
had  some  form  of  mechanism  for  the  rapid  turning  of  drill 
and  wheel.  The  writers  do  not  aid  us  and  our  single  basis 
of  information  is  the  funeral  stone  of  a  gem-cutter  which 
was  found  at  Philadelphia  in  Asia  Minor.  It  dates  from  the 
time  of  the  Empire  and  shows  a  contrivance  (Fig.  29)  which 
suggests  the  bow  used  in  metal  work  by 
jewelers  today.  This  instrument,  drawn 
quickly  back  and  forth,  with  the  string 
looped  about  a  spindle  holding  the  tool, 
imparts  to  the  latter  the  necessary  rotary 
motion.  Whether  the  gem  or  the  mandril  was  stationary  in 
the  ancient  work  we  do  not  know.  Furtwangler  suggests  that 
they  applied  their  tools  to  the  stone  held  firmly  in  place, 
instead  of  pressing  the  latter  against  the  tool,  and  he  also 


TURNING  MECHANISM,  LENS 


275 


says  that,  while  with  a  hand-bow  they  would  be  at  the  seeming 
disadvantage  of  not  having  both  hands  free  as  do  our  workmen, 
their  control  might  be  better  for  some  purposes.  I  see  no 
reason  for  such  assumptions.  Modern  jewelers  hold  their 
work  against  the  tool  revolving  in  a  stationary  spindle  looped 
in  the  bow,  and  it  is  difficult  to  conceive  of  sufficient  steadiness 
in  a  tool  held  in  the  hand  and  worked  by  such  a  mechanism. 
Moreover,  with  a  stationary  spindle  the  bow  might  easily  be 
manipulated  by  an  assistant  and  the  artist  still  have  both 
hands  free  for  the  gem.  There  are  features,  too,  in  the  above 
picture  from  the  grave-stela,  incomplete  as  it  probably  is,  that 
imply  some  modification  of  the  bow  mechanism.  Possibly  it 
represents  an  improvement  on  a  hand-bow  of  earlier  times, 
but  the  question  is  one  that  sends  us  to  the  field  of  conjecture 
and,  after  all,  its  solution  would  mean  nothing  in  the  study 
of  the  work.  For  that  it  is  enough  to  know  that  the  cutting 
was  done  by  revolving  tools. 

Another  not  especially  important  matter  upon  which  more 
or  less  theorizing  has  been  indulged  in  is  whether  a  lens  was 
used  by  the  ancient  artist.  As  a  necessity  it  ranks  much 
lower  in  such  minute  work  than  might  at  first  thought  appear. 
I  have  seen  gem-cutters  use  it,  but  only  to  examine  impressions 
of  an  intaglio,  taken  from  time  to  time  as  the  cutting  progress¬ 
ed.  Touch  seems  to  be  the  sense  upon  which  they  chiefly  rely, 
and  it  is  easy  to  conceive  of  such  perfection  of  touch  in  an 
artist  as  would  make  each  unseen  stroke  as  certain  as  those 
of  the  sculptor  of  a  colossal  statue.  Naturally  it  is  impossible, 
in  any  event,  for  the  eye  to  guide  the  progress  of  an  engraving 
obscured  as  it  is  by  a  smear  of  oil  and  powdered  emery.  More¬ 
over,  it  is  a  matter  of  conjecture  whether  the  ancients  had 
such  a  knowledge  of  the  lens  as  would  enable  them  to  apply 
it  effectively  to  work  of  this  character. 

Granting  first  rate  eyesight  and  an  educated  sense  of 
touch,  we  need  not  wonder  at  any  degree  of  excellence  in  an 
intaglio.  Analogies  are  not  lacking  that  show  the  perfection 
to  which  aptness  and  training  can  bring  the  senses,  until  all 
achievement  lies  well  within  the  bounds  of  possibility.  Inci- 


276 


TOOLS  AND  TECHNICAL  METHODS 


dentally,  it  is  told  of  Pistrucci  that,  until  his  death  at  seventy- 
three  years  of  age,  he  never  had  to  use  glasses  for  his  work. 

After  the  completion  of  the  engraving,  its  polishing  was 
next  in  order.  The  surface  and,  usually,  the  back  of  the  stone 
seem  to  have  been  polished  before  the  engraving  was  done, 
since,  otherwise,  the  preliminary  sketch  could  hardly  be 
effective  and,  moreover,  much  polishing  of  the  surface  after 
the  engraving  was  completed  would  tend  to  mar  its  outlines, 
as  we  often  see  in  the  case  of  repolished  gems.  Modern 
engravers  who  dull  the  polish  before  drawing  their  sketch,  have 
only  to  restore  it  with  moistened  rotten  stone  which  does  not 
seem  to  fray  the  lines  as  does,  often,  the  attempt  to  repolish 
a  stone  in  the  ancient  style.  This  ancient  polish  was  effected 
by  rubbing  it  back  and  forth  on  a  polishing  surface  covered 
with  finely  ground  Naxian  powder:  a  process  which  produced 
a  more  or  less  wavy  effect  of  which  I  have  already  spoken  in 
my  Introduction  as  the  hog-back  polish.  The  absolutely  even, 
looking-glass  polish  found  on  most  modern  gems  could  not  be 
got  by  the  ancient  method. 

For  the  polishing  of  the  interior  of  the  intaglio  we  can 
only  speculate  as  to  the  means  employed.  Lead  pointed  tools 
and  even  quills  have  been  used  in  modern  times  to  rub  the 
diamond  powder  over  both  the  large  and  small  intaglio  sur¬ 
faces.  This  operation  is  merely  a  matter  of  industry,  for, 
though  the  polishing  of  minute  interior  surfaces  means  a  good 
deal  of  labor,  many  modern  intaglios  have  received  a  polish 
seldom  attempted  by  the  ancients,  save  only  the  diligent 
Etruscans  through  all  their  later  periods  and  the  artists  of 
Grmco-Roman  times. 

As  to  the  presence,  absence,  degree  and  distribution  of 
interior  polish  in  different  periods  and  places,  these  have  been 
described,  I  trust  with  sufficient  fulness,  under  the  appropriate 
headings. 


CHAPTER  II 


THE  STONES  USED  FOR  ANCIENT  INTAGLIOS 

The  stones  used  by  the  ancient  engravers  we,  of  course, 
have,  but  it  is  often  difficult  or  conjectural  to  identify  them 
with  their  ancient  names.  Part  of  this  difficulty  is  due  to 
the  fact  that  their  mineralogical  composition  was  unknown 
to  the  Greeks  and  Romans  who  distinguished  the  species  on  a 
basis  of  their  appearance  alone  and,  largely,  according  to  their 
colors.  Thus  we  find  the  same  name  applied  to  several  ma¬ 
terials  of  very  different  character  and,  conversely,  different 
names  given  to  mere  color  varieties  of  the  same  gem. 

Always,  too,  we  must  bear  in  mind  that,  from  the  stand¬ 
point  of  the  maker  and  wearer  of  talisman  or  amulet,  the 
substance  was  often  quite  as  important  to  the  end  as  was  the 
device. 

To  consider,  now,  the  kinds  of  stones  not  used  for  ancient 
intaglios,  we  may,  of  course,  begin  by  eliminating  those  not 
found  in  or  within  trading  distance  of  the  homes  of  the  work. 
Secondly,  we  may  eliminate  the  diamond.  We  do  not  know 
just  when  the  ancients  became  acquainted  with  it  but  we  do 
know  that  it  was  never  engraved  by  them.  As  for  the  ruby, 
whether  Oriental,  spinel  or  balas,  the  ancient  intaglios  found 
on  it  are  so  superlatively  few  and  far  between  and,  gene¬ 
rally,  so  open  to  suspicion  that  it  is  pretty  safe  to  deny  the 
antiquity  of  any  picture  cut  in  such  material.  The  sapphire 
is  almost  in  the  same  category,  but  it  was  rarely  used  in 
Graeco-Roman  and  later  times.  Whether  it  was  the  “cyanus,” 
“sapirus,”  “hyacinthus”  or  “beryllus  aeroides”  of  Pliny  is  a 
question  about  which  opinions  have  varied  and  on  which  no 
satisfactory  conclusion  has  been  reached. 

The  emerald  is  nearly  as  rare  among  ancient  intaglios 

277 


STONES  USED 


278 

as  is  the  sapphire,  and  we  are  still  in  the  class  of  materials 
which  may  be  described  as  extra  hazardous.  It  was  called 
“smaragdus,”  a  name  which  it  shared  with  several  other  green 
stones,  all  powerful  in  their  magic  influences. 

The  c-ymophane  or  cat’s-eye  chrysoberyl  and  the  opal  were 
never  used. 

Carnelian  or  Sard. — Coming  now  to  the  stones  most  in 
use,  it  would  be  pretty  safe  to  say  that  at  least  forty-nine 
fiftieths  of  ancient  intaglios  are  on  different  varieties  of  quartz 
and,  among  these,  again,  by  far  the  commonest  are  the  carne- 
lians  or  sards.  These  names  have  been  so  loosely  and  variously 
used  by  different  authors  as  to  leave  the  subject  in  very  much 
of  a  tangle. 

Pliny  writes:  “The  most  esteemed  kind  is  that  of  the 
vicinity  of  Babylon  .  .  . ,  though  it  is  to  be  found  in  numerous 
other  localities,  Paros  and  Assos,  for  example.  In  India  there 
are  three  varieties  of  this  stone:  the  red  sard,  the  one  known 
as  ‘pionia’  from  its  thickness,  and  a  third  kind  beneath  which 
they  place  a  ground  of  silver  tinsel.  The  Indian  stones  are 
transparent,  those  of  Arabia  being  more  opaque.  There  are 
some  found,  also,  in  the  vicinity  of  Leukas  in  Epeiros,  and 
in  Egypt,  which  have  a  ground  placed  beneath  them  of  leaf 
gold.  .  .  .  Among  the  ancients  there  was  no  precious  stone 
in  more  common  use  than  this.  .  .  .  Those  stones  which  are 
like  honey  in  color  are  generally  disapproved  of  and,  still 
more,  when  they  have  the  complexion  of  earthenware.”  Such 
preferences,  of  course,  varied  at  different  periods.  All  were 
called  sards,  the  deep  reds  and  brownish  being  considered  male 
stones,  the  lighter,  female.  The  brilliant  red  “Babylonian 
stones,”  coming  from  the  East,  were  believed  to  make  the 
wearer  brave  in  battle  and  to  be  a  protection  against  and  a 
remedy  for  wounds. 

In  England  the  term,  carnelian,  seems  to  be  commonly  used 
for  the  more  opaque  varieties,  generally  of  a  dull  red  color. 
This  is  the  stone  found  in  Italian  streams,  also  in  Egypt, 
and  many  scarabs,  both  Etruscan  and  Egyptian,  are  fashioned 
in  it.  The  English  “sards”  are  the  more  translucent  stones, 


SARD,  CHALCEDONY,  PLASMA 


279 


but  some  writers  adopt  either  name  exclusively  or  both  inter¬ 
changeably. 

The  sardoine  of  the  French  is  the  dark  red,  translucent, 
sometimes  even  transparent  stone,  often  verging  into  so  dark 
a  brown  as  to  be  almost  black  except  when  held  up  to  the 
light,  and  it  is  this  that  Dr.  Furtwangler  calls  the  brown  sard. 
With  him  all  the  lighter  shades,  whether  translucent  or  opaque, 
are  carnelians,  running  down  through  the  lighter  reds  into 
a  clear  yellow.  Often  they  are  streaked  or  variegated  like 
agate.  I  have  followed  Furtwangler’s  nomenclature,  though 
it  is  not  always  easy  to  fix  where  the  “carnelian”  ends  and  the 
“brown  sard”  begins. 

Chalcedony. — Also  a  quartz  and  very  common,  especially 
at  certain  periods,  this  stone  is  generally  half  transparent  or 
translucent,  though  sometimes  opaque.  Sometimes  it  is  a  more 
or  less  milky  wrhite  ranging  into  various  shades  of  gray  or  into 
yellowish,  brownish  or  bluish  tints.  The  brown  and  yellow 
shades  run  into  the  sard  which,  in  composition,  is  really  a 
yellow,  red  or  brown  chalcedony.  The  bluish  gray,  so  es¬ 
pecially  affected  by  the  Persians  that  there  must  have  been  some 
underlying  belief  in  its  magic  powers,  is  called  by  the  French, 
sapphirine.  We  do  not  know  the  ancient  name  for  this  stone. 
Perhaps  it  was  the  “leucachetes”  of  Pliny,  though  he  hardly 
gives  the  consideration  to  that  gem  which  one  would  expect 
him  to  give  to  so  widely  popular  a  material.  More  probably 
his  “leucachates”  was  merely  the  opaque  white  variety.  Both 
Furtwangler  and  King  incline  to  identify  it  with  the  ancient 
“jaspis”  which  seems  to  me  misleading,  since  what  we  call 
chalcedony  is  primarily  a  whitish  stone  with  various  shadings, 
and  the  greenish  tints  which  Pliny’s  “jaspis”  had,  have  given 
a  distinct  name  to  certain  green  quartzes  which  may,  much 
more  justly,  be  identified  with  it. 

Plasma. — The  “jaspis”  of  Pliny  seems  to  me  to  be  identical 
with  our  plasma,  a  quartz  ranging  from  the  almost  transparent 
to  translucent  and  often  so  muddy  and  impure  as  to  be 
practically  opaque.  Its  color  runs  from  greenish  white 
through  yellowish  green  up  to  the  darkest  green  tints.  Often 


280 


STONES  USED 


the  greenish  and  yellowish  shadings  are  uneven  and  give  the 
effect  of  clouding  or  even  mottling.  It  was  very  popular  in 
the  early  Empire.  Of  course  it  had  magic  power  and  in  later 
times,  engraved  with  the  Chnumis  Agathodaimon,  it  was  re¬ 
puted  a  cure  for  diseases  of  the  chest  and  stomach. 

Chrysoprase. — Chrysoprase,  the  ancient  “chrysoprasus,” 
is  merely  the  name  given  to  the  clear  apple  or  leek  green 
varieties  of  plasma,  often  ranging  into  golden  tints.  Pliny 
speaks  of  it  as  a  kind  of  “prasius,”  a  name  which  also  includes 
several  special  types  of  banded  or  spotted  green  stones. 

Jasper. — The  practically  opaque  colored  quartzes  which 
we  call  jasper  were  very  common  gem  stones.  The  range  of 
colors  and  of  their  combinations  is  wide  and,  doubtless,  each 
had  its  name,  though  we  can  but  guess  at  a  few  of  them.  Our 
green  jasper  may  have  been  included  under  the  name,  “jaspis,” 
though  it  is  hardly  probable.  The  red  jasper  was  very  popular 
from  Augustan  times  down,  varying  in  shades  from  a  dull 
brownish  red  through  blood  red  into  a  bright,  beautiful  vermil¬ 
ion  capable  of  receiving  a  fine  polish.  It  seems  probable  that 
it  was  known  anciently  as  “luematitis,”  of  which  Pliny  says: 
“It  is  a  stone  of  blood  red  color,  and  we  must  not  omit  to 
mention  the  assurance  given  that  the  possession  of  it  reveals 
treacherous  designs  on  the  part  of  the  barbarians.  Zachalias 
of  Babylon,  in  the  books  which  he  dedicated  to  King  Mithri- 
dates,  attributing  the  destinies  of  man  to  certain  properties 
innate  in  precious  stones,  is  not  content  with  vaunting  the 
merits  of  this  stone  as  curative  of  diseases  of  the  eyes  and 
liver,  but  recommends  it  also  as  insuring  success  to  petitions 
addressed  to  kings.  He  also  makes  it  play  its  part  in  law¬ 
suits  and  judgments,  and  even  goes  so  far  as  to  say  that  it  is 
highly  beneficial  to  be  rubbed  with  it  on  the  field  of  battle.” 
Yellow  jasper,  as  to  the  old  name  of  which  we  are  without 
any  good  evidence,  came  into  use  only  in  the  later  Empire. 
Also  there  is  white  jasper,  practically  the  same  as  white 
agate  or  opaque  white  chalcedony,  and  various  shades  of  brown 
ranging  into  black.  Of  course  there  were  many  jaspers  of 
mingled  colors,  including  a  red  with  white  mottlings,  used 


JASPER,  BLOODSTONE,  AGATE 


281 


in  Mycenaean  times,  the  red  and  yellow,  popular  with  Dexa- 
menos  and  his  contemporaries  in  the  best  Greek  period,  and  a 
green  and  brown  used  in  the  late  Empire. 

Bloodstone.-— One  of  these  mixed  jaspers,  quite  popular 
in  late  Imperial  and  also  modern  times,  has  with  us  the 
separate  name  of  bloodstone  and  is  identical  with  the  ancient 
“heliotropium” ;  a  green  jasper,  sometimes  slightly  translucent 
at  the  edges  and  spotted  with  red.  Pliny  writes  of  it:  “In 
the  use  of  this  stone,  also,  we  have  a  most  glaring  illustration 
of  the  impudent  effrontery  of  the  adepts  in  magic,  for  they 
say  that,  if  it  is  combined  with  the  plant,  heliotropium,  and 
certain  incantations  are  then  repeated  over  it,  it  will  render 
the  person  invisible  who  carries  it  about  him.”  Evidently 
there  were  skeptics  before  Bob  Ingersoll. 

Agate  or  Onyx. — The  agate  or  ancient  “achates”  was  a 
more  or  less  popular  stone  in  all  epochs,  since  its  varied  lines 
and  conformations  were  calculated  to  suggest  ideas  as  to  its 
mysterious  origin  and  the  resultant  magic-working  powers 
alluded  to  in  many  ancient  writings  including  Pliny,  Sokrates 
Dionysios,  Epiphanios,  and  the  Orphic  Poems. 

The  difference  between  agate  and  onyx  has  always  been 
rather  vaguely  defined.  Both  are  variegated  quartz,  and, 
perhaps  the  best  line  of  demarcation  is  that  the  onyx  consists 
of  only  two  layers  of  different  colors,  a  white  and  dark  brown 
or  black,  whereas  the  agate  is  a  combination  of  lines  and 
layers,  usually  straight  but  often  forced  into  wavy,  zigzag, 
irregular  and  fantastic  figures.  The  most  usual  shades  are 
milky,  bluish,  yellowish  or  brownish  whites,  grays,  yellows, 
reds,  browns,  and  blacks. 

The  ancient  varieties  of  “achates”  were  many,  based  in  part 
on  colors  or  combinations,  and,  doubtless,  some  of  the  gems 
were  not  agates  at  all.  We  refer  to  certain  types,  where  the 
colors  run  regularly  across  the  stone,  as  striped  or  banded 
agates,  respectively  when  the  lines  are  narrow  or  broad.  When 
they  run  about  a  middle  point,  the  gem  is  called  a  circle- 
agate  and  when  the  colors,  breadth  of  lines,  and  size  of  the 
central  point  suggests  the  idea,  an  eye-agate.  This  last  type 


282 


STONES  USED 


was,  naturally,  a  wonder-worker  of  great  power.  Pliny 
describes  one  variety  of  eye-agate,  the  “Beli-oculus”  (eye  of 
Baal),  held  in  the  highest  veneration  by  the  Assyrians,  as 
having  a  whitish  iris  about  a  black  pupil.  Also  he  refers  to 
another,  stating  that  the  “Leucophthalmos,  which  in  other  re¬ 
spects  is  of  a  reddish  hue,  presents  all  the  appearance  of  an 
eye  in  white  and  black.” 

Nicolo. — A  definite  agate  or,  more  properly,  onyx  combina¬ 
tion  wras  the  ‘LEgyptilla”  or  Arabian  sardonyx  of  Pliny,  which 
first  came  into  fashion  in  the  first  century  B.  C.  We  know 
it  as  the  nicolo.  It  consists  of  an  opaque  black  or,  rarely,  a 
dark  or  even  light  brown  layer,  with  a  bluish  white  one  super¬ 
imposed.  Intaglios  in  it  were  always  cut  through  the  light 
layer  into  the  dark,  so  that  the  term,  nicolo,  has  come  to  refer 
as  much  to  the  style  of  cutting  as  to  the  substance.  Later  in 
the  Empire  it  was  also  the  fashion  to  bevel  off  the  edges,  leaving 
a  border  of  the  dark  layer. 

Sardonyx. — This  stone,  as  its  name  suggests,  was,  prima¬ 
rily,  a  kind  of  onyx  in  which  the  darker  layer  was  sard.  Pliny 
says,  quoting  from  earlier  writers,  that  the  true  sardonyx  came 
from  India  and  was  transparent  and  that  the  opaque  gems 
which  had  usurped  the  name  in  his  day  were  then  called  “blind 
sardonyx.”  He  also  states  that  the  Arabian  sardonyx  of  his 
times  presented  no  traces  of  the  transparent  Indian  sard  but 
that  the  name,  sardonyx,  was  given  to  several  varieties  of  color¬ 
ed  stones,  some  in  three  colors,  such  as  black,  red,  and  white, 
so  that  it  had  come,  doubtless,  to  include  the  onyx  as  well,  or, 
perhaps,  even,  was  distinguished  from  it  by  having  three  instead 
of  two  layers  of  different  colors.  Today,  the  last  named  distinc¬ 
tion  has  also  been  maintained,  but  the  only  rational  one  is  that 
which  the  name  indicates :  that  the  sardonyx  is  simply  a  layer 
stone  in  which  the  darker  layer  is  sard,  taking  the  term  as 
covering  all  the  shades  from  dark  brownish  red  to  light  reddish 
yellow. 

The  Greeks  and  Etruscans,  as  I  have  already  written,  cut 
this  gem  across  the  layers,  as  they  did  the  agate,  but  in  Roman 
Imperial  times  the  sardonyx  was  usually  cut  in  the  form  of  a 


ROOK-CRYSTAL,  AMETHYST,  BERYL 


283 


truncated  cone,  so  that  all  the  colors  would  show  on  the  sides, 
and  the  intaglio  was  engraved  in  the  sard  layer  forming  the 
smaller  surface. 

Rock-Crystal. — Turning  to  the  crystalline  quartzes  we 
have,  first,  the  rock-crystal  which  needs  no  explanation  and 
which  occurred  in  Mycenaean  and  Greek  times  and,  again,  in 
Roman  Imperial.  Neither  the  Etruscans  nor  the  early  Italians 
used  it.  It  was  a  favorite  material  during  the  Renaissance. 

Amethyst. — Also  a  crystalline  quartz,  this  gem,  while 
commoner  than  the  preceding,  followed  generally  its  lines  of 
occurrence.  The  deepest  purples  were  the  Indian  stones.  The 
lighter  ones  may  have  been  Pliny’s  “hyacinthus.”  In  amulet 
lore  the  amethyst  was  supposed,  as  its  name  indicates,  to 
protect  the  wearer  against  drunkenness,  also  to  insure  access 
to  the  presence  of  kings,  avert  hail  and  locusts,  and  perform 
other  desirable  services. 

Beryl. — Coming  now  to  the  more  valuable  stones  imported 
from  the  East,  after  the  conquests  of  Alexander,  the  beryl,  a 
gem  of  the  same  character  as  the  emerald,  was  perhaps  most 
highly  prized ;  so  highly,  in  fact,  that  in  Hellenistic  and  Augus¬ 
tan  times  such  works  as  we  find  on  it  are  always  of  merit. 
Pliny  mentions  a  number  of  varieties  of  his  “beryllus”,  under 
which  name  it  is  probable  that  he  included  some  kinds  of  topaz. 
He  speaks  of  those  “Which  in  color  resemble  the  pure  green 
of  the  sea,”  those  “Of  a  somewhat  paler  color  but  approaching 
a  golden  tint,”  which  he  calls  the  “chrysoberyllus”  and,  still 
more  pale,  the  “chrysoprasus.” 

Aquamarine. — This  variety  of  beryl,  bluish  green  in  color 
and  probably  referred  to  by  Pliny  as  the  hyacinthine  beryl, 
was  highly  prized.  It  may  also  be  the  “hyacinthus”  of  his  list. 
Such  sea-colored  stones,  engraved  with  the  figure  of  Poseidon 
or  some  other  sea-deity,  were  held  to  have  the  power  of  protect¬ 
ing  their  wearers  from  shipwreck  and  like  perils. 

Topaz. — Yellow  topazes  are  found  very  rarely  with  ancient 
engravings.  It  was  probably  the  “chrysolithos”  of  the  ancients. 

Peridot. — Our  peridot  or  chrysolite,  on  the  other  hand, 


284 


STONES  USED 


seems  to  have  been  the  “topazios”  of  Pliny  and  was  also  a  stone 
very  rarely  used  by  ancient  engravers. 

Moonstone. — Even  more  rare  are  pictures  on  the  moon¬ 
stone,  the  ancient  name  of  which  is  unknown.  As  with  us 
it  was  always  cut  convex. 

Garnet. — Most  common  of  all  the  Eastern  gems  intro¬ 
duced  in  Hellenistic  times  were  several  varieties  of  the  garnet. 
It  was  called  “carbunculus”  and  “anthrax.”  From  India  came 
the  pure  transparent  red  without  violet  or  orange  intermixture. 
Excellent  engraving  is  found  on  it.  Also  garnets  having  the 
orange  or  brownish  tone,  known  as  hyacinthine  garnets  and 
not  easily  distinguished  from  the  true  hyacinth  or  zircon, 
were  great  favorites,  as  were  those  with  a  violet  shade — alman- 
dines;  common,  especially  in  the  East  throughout  the  Helle¬ 
nistic  and  Graeco-Roman  periods.  All  were,  as  a  rule,  cut 
strongly  convex  and  not  infrequently  with  concave  backs. 
Small  garnets,  sometimes  cut  flat,  with  cheap,  rude  engrav¬ 
ings,  were  not  uncommon  even  in  Sassanian  times. 

Turquoise. — Our  turquoise  was  probably  the  “callais”  of 
Pliny.  Hardly  ever  used  by  the  Greeks,  it  was  rarely  employ¬ 
ed  by  Graeco-Roman  artists. 

Lapis  Lazuli. — “Cyanus”  and  “sapirus,”  already  alluded 
to  as  possible  names  for  the  sapphire,  were  much  more  probably 
lapis  lazulis.  Not  much  used  in  classic  periods,  it  is  some¬ 
times  found  bearing  cheap  intaglios  of  Roman  times  and  was 
rather  common  as  a  material  of  the  Sassanian  gem  cutters. 
During  the  Renaissance  it  experienced  a  revival  of  an  undesir¬ 
able  character  to  which  I  have  alluded  in  place. 

Green  Malachite. — This  was  the  ancient  “molochitis” 
and  was  very  rarely  used. 

Serpentine. — This  stone  wTas  used  considerably  in  Myce¬ 
naean  times.  Later  there  was  no  demand  for  it. 

Hematite. — The  old  name  of  “haematitis”  included  not 
only  the  red  jasper  but  also  a  class  of  iron-stones  which  run 
in  color  from  dark  steel  gray  to  iron  black  or  brownish  red. 
Much  used  for  Oriental  cylinders,  it  had  spread  into  Greece  in 
the  Mycenaean  Age  and  appeared  there  also  in  the  Archaic. 


HEMATITE,  STEATITE 


285 


Later,  it  naturally  fell  into  disrepute,  only  to  be  revived  again 
in  late  Roman  times,  when  the  wonderful  magic  influence  with 
which  the  Chaldmans  had  invested  it  made  it  a  very  common 
material  for  Gnostic  talismans  and  amulets  and  for  other 
wonder-working  gems. 

Porphyry. — Some  kinds  of  porphyry  were  also  used  by 
Mycenagan  engravers,  but  the  later  periods  ignored  it  until 
the  times  of  the  Gnostics.  It  was  also  employed  during  the 
Renaissance. 

Steatite. — The  various  shades  of  steatite  or  soapstone; 
white,  gray,  pale  yellow,  greenish,  reddish,  brownish,  and  black¬ 
ish,  were  favored  in  periods  when  signets  were  engraved  directly 
by  hand.  Soft,  generally  opaque,  though  sometimes  slightly 
translucent  at  the  edges,  it  was  an  easy  material  to  wTork  and 
readily  obtainable  throughout  the  infancy  of  the  art.  Even 
later  it  was  not  altogether  dropped  by  makers  of  the  poorest 
and  cheapest  signets,  but,  with  the  general  use  of  instruments 
turned  by  mechanism,  it  became  easier  to  engrave  a  hard 
stone  with  the  wheel  than  to  cut  steatite  by  hand,  and  its 
disuse  followed  naturally. 

Marble. — A  few  gems  were  cut  in  this  substance  which 
had  been  used  to  some  extent  for  the  cylinders  of  the  East. 
The  “porphyrites  leptospsephos”  of  Pliny  was  the  red  and 
white  marble  of  Egypt. 

Shales. — These  were  used  occasionally  in  the  days  of  hand- 
cut  stones. 

Doubtless  stray  examples  in  other  materials  than  those 
mentioned  may  occur,  but  they  must  be  set  down  as  in  the  class 
of  exceptions. 


CHAPTER  III 


HISTORICAL  AND  MYTHOLOGICAL  SIGNETS 

Of  deep  interest  to  the  student  of  gems  is  the  knowledge 
we  have  from  ancient  literature  of  the  signet  devices  of  many 
of  the  personages  of  antiquity.  Few  of  the  stones  themselves 
have  been  found  and  identified,  but  the  chances  are  that  most 
of  them  are  still  in  existence  and  the  possibility  of  a  discovery 
and  satisfactory  identification  in  such  a  line  is  always  one  of 
the  romantic  dreams  we  love  to  cherish.  A  list  of  these  devices 
is  desirable  from  every  standpoint. 

Polykrates;  Tyrant  of  Samos. — A  lyre,  engraved  on  a 
smaragdus  by  Theodoros  of  Samos.  Clemens  Alexandrinus 
(III,  11),  Herodotus  (III,  41)  and  Pausanias  (VIII,  14) 
merely  say  that  the  stone  was  a  smaragdus.  Dr.  Benndorf,  in 
his  reading  of  Pliny  (XXXIV,  19),  maintains  that  the  famous 
portrait  statue  of  Theodoros,  made  by  himself,  held  in  its  hand, 
not  a  minute  quadriga,  but  a  scarab  engraved  with  a  quadriga, 
and  that  this  was,  doubtless,  the  famous  device  ( Zeitschrift  fur 
die  Oesterreich  Gymnasien,  1873,  pp.  401 — 411).  If  he  be  right, 
however,  about  the  reading  I  would  be  inclined  to  infer  that 
the  quadriga  would  be  as  likely  to  have  been  the  signet  of  the 
artist  himself  as  of  his  royal  patron. 

Amphitryon;  (mythical). — Helios  rising  in  his  chariot 
(Plautus’  Amphitryon ;  Act  1,  Scene  1).  Of  course  a  fiction 
of  the  playwright,  but  interesting  in  its  choice  of  subject. 

Orestes;  (mythical). — According  to  Sophokles  ( Elektra ), 
Orestes’  signet  pictured  the  ivory  shoulder  of  Pelops.  The 
subject  suggests  something  in  the  nature  of  the  bent  arm  or 
leg  pictographs  on  Cretan  gems. 

Odysseus. — Another  mythical  signet  is  the  dolphin  which 

286 


GREEK  PERSONAL  SIGNETS 


287 


legend  fixes  as  the  device  of  Odysseus.  Plutarch,  in  his  De 
Bollertia  Animalium,  (XXXVI),  quotes  Kritheus’  testimony, 
from  the  Zakynthian  Records,  to  the  above  effect. 

Xerxes. — A  nude  female  figure  with  disheveled  hair, 
probably  Anaitis  (Polyainos) ;  but  the  scholiast  on  Thukidides 
( I,  129 )  says :  “The  signet  of  the  king  of  the  Persians  bore, 
according  to  some,  the  monarch’s  own  portrait;  according  to 
others  that  of  Cyrus,  the  founder  of  the  monarchy,  or,  as  others 
again  say,  the  horse  of  Dareios,  in  virtue  of  whose  neighing 
he  was  elected  king.”  Any  of  these  latter  would  doubtless  be 
of  Greek  workmanship.  The  design  given  by  Polyainos  was 
not  uncommon  on  Oriental  seals,  both  cylinders  and  cones,  and 
seems  more  probable. 

Battos;  King  of  Kyrene. — A  figure  of  himself  with  a 
personification  (or  the  genius)  of  the  city  of  Kyrene  bringing 
him  an  offering  of  a  sylphium  plant.  A.  S.  Murray,  in  his 
introduction  to  the  Catalogue  of  Engraved  Gems  in  the 
British  Museum,  refers  to  this  device  but  neglects  to  cite  his 
authority. 

Ismenias;  the  flute  player. — A  figure  of  the  nymph, 
Amymone,  engraved  on  a  smaragdus  (Pliny,  XXXVII,  3). 

Klearchos  ;  one  of  the  generals  of  Cyrus  the  Younger. 
— The  maidens  of  Karya  in  Lakonia  dancing  in  honor  of 
Artemis.  Given  by  him,  when  a  prisoner  awaiting  death,  to 
Ktesias,  the  physician  of  Artaxerxes,  as  an  acknowledgment  of 
his  favor  in  obtaining  a  comb  for  his  hair  which  was  worn  long 
after  the  Spartan  fashion.  (Plutarch’s  Life  of  Artaxerxes) . 

Alexander  the  Great. — After  his  conquest  of  Dareios, 
Alexander  is  said  to  have  used  for  his  Persian  edicts  the  con¬ 
quered  king’s  signet,  perhaps  the  green  chalcedony  cylinder 
now  in  the  British  Museum  showing  the  monarch  in  his  chariot 
and  which  bears  the  legend,  “I  Dareios  the  King.”  His  personal 
seal,  used  for  all  other  purposes  and  set  in  the  ring  he  gave 
when  dying  to  Perdikkas,  may  have  borne  a  lion  emblematic 
of  his  descent  from  Herakles,  as  stated  by  King;  the  device 
with  which,  according  to  Plutarch,  Philip  dreamed  he  had 


288 


HISTORICAL  SIGNETS 


sealed  up  Ms  wife’s  womb.  Perhaps  it  was  a  smaragdus  en¬ 
graved  with  his  portrait  by  Pyrgoteles. 

Seleukos. — An  anchor.  Justin  (XV,  4)  tells  that  the 
mother  of  Seleukos  dreamed  that  she  had  conceived  a  son  by 
Apollo  who  gave  her  a  ring  which  he  desired  her  to  give  to  the 
child  she  should  bear,  and,  on  awaking,  she  found  in  her  bed 
what  she  took  to  be  the  signet  of  the  god,  engraved  with  the 
above  device,  which  she  presented  to  her  son  when  he  was 
going,  with  Alexander,  to  the  Persian  wars. 

Kallikrates;  a  courtier  op  Ptolemaios  III  (Euer- 
getes). — A  head  of  Odysseus  (Athenseus,  VI,  59). 

Pyrrhos;  King  of  Epeiros. — Pliny  states  (XXXVII,  3) 
that  this  king  possessed  an  agate  which  showed  Apoll5  playing 
a  lyre  with  the  nine  Muses  around  him,  the  picture  being 
portrayed  solely  by  the  veins  in  the  stone  without  the  aid  of 
engraving.  This,  of  course,  could  not  have  been  used  as  a 
signet. 

Ptolemaios  VIII,  surnamed  Lathyros  or  Soter  II. — 
A  portrait  of  himself  engraved  on  a  very  precious  smaragdus 
which  he  gave  to  Lucullus,  on  the  latter’s  departure  for  Rome. 

Athenion;  ambassador  from  Athens  to  the  court  of 
Mithridates. — The  portrait  of  that  monarch  (Athenaeus, 
V,  49). 

Areios  ;  King  of  Sparta. — An  eagle  grasping  a  serpent  in 
its  talons  (Josephus’  Antiquities  of  the  Jews,  XII,  4). 

In  the  time  of  Pausanias  (III,  11)  the  Spartan  govern¬ 
ment  sealed  all  their  public  documents  with  the  portrait  of 
Polydoros,  one  of  their  ancient  kings. 

“King  Hydaspes,  of  Ethiopia”. — Dr.  King,  with  his  not 
uncommon  inaccuracy,  attributes  to  this  imaginary  monarch 
the  signet  ring  described  by  Heliodoros,  Bishop  of  Trikka, 
about  400  A.  D.,  in  Book  V  of  his  Theagenes  and  Charicleia, 
as  having  been  given  by  Kalisiris  to  Nausikles,  as  a  ransom 
for  the  heroine  of  the  tale.  The  gem,  says  that  author,  was  an 
amethyst  of  deep  purple,  “Of  the  size  of  a  maiden’s  eye,”  en¬ 
graved  with  the  picture  of  a  shepherd  seated  on  a  rock  and 
piping  to  his  sheep,  the  whole  being  surrounded  by  a  cable 


ROMAN  PERSONAL  SIGNETS 


289 


border  which  is  spoken  of  figuratively  as  a  stone  wall  to  re¬ 
strain  the  wandering  of  the  flock.  Now  this  gem  is  described 
so  minutely  that  it  evidently  belonged  to  or  was  one  admired 
by  Heliodoros  himself  and,  as  such,  is  most  interesting,  and 
could  probably  be  identified  if  ever  found.  This  is  not,  how¬ 
ever,  the  gem  assigned  by  him  to  Hydaspes  and  wrorn  by  his 
daughter,  Charikleia.  The  latter  is  described  in  Book  VIII  of 
the  same  work  as  a  “pantarbe  inscribed  with  sacred  letters.” 
What  the  pantarbe  was  we  do  not  know.  The  idea  of  the 
sacred  letters  was  doubtless  got  from  the  Gnostic  talismans 
of  Heliodoros’  time. 

Lucius  Cornelius  Scipio  Barbatits  ;  Consul,  298  B.  C. — 
The  earliest  known  Roman  signet  with  personal  affiliation  is 
the  standing  figure  of  Victory  with  wreath  and  palm  branch 
on  a  sard  which  is  stated  by  Middleton  and  intimated  by 
King  to  have  been  found  in  1780  in  the  sarcophagus  of  Lucius 
Cornelius  Scipio  Barbatus,  and  is  “now”  (1891),  according  to 
the  former  authority,  in  the  possession  of  the  Duke  of  North¬ 
umberland.  King’s  statement  is  clouded  by  his  usual  inaccura¬ 
cies,  such  as  that  the  gem  was  given  in  1780  by  Pope  Clement 
XIII  (who  died  in  1769)  to  M.  Dutens,  the  traveling  companion 
of  Lord  Beverley.  How  far  Middleton  has  followed  King  in 
his  facts,  I  do  not  know,  but  the  picture  strikes  me  as  incon¬ 
gruous,  both  in  subject  and  treatment,  with  the  Roman  cuttings 
of  that  period,  and,  as  several  sarcophagi  of  later  Scipios  were 
found  in  the  same  tomb,  it  seems  possible  that  it  may  have 
belonged  to  one  of  these.  Without  the  basic  evidence  in  hand 
and  in  view  of  the  looseness  of  records  of  discovery  at  that 
time,  I  feel  bound  to  hazard  such  a  query. 

Quintus  Cornelius  Lupus. — A  sard,  formerly  in  the 
Waterton  Collection,  bearing  a  horse’s  head  and  two  Gallic 
shields,  commemorative  of  the  victory  of  one  of  his  kinsmen, 
either  C.  Cornelius  Cethegus  who  defeated  the  Insubres  in  197 
B.  C.,  or  P.  Cornelius  Scipio  Nasica  who  overcame  the  Boii  in 
191.  Possibly,  by  the  introduction  of  the  two  shields,  the  owner 
may  have  referred  to  both  exploits. 

Marcellus;  the  opponent  of  Hannibal. — There  is  a 


290 


HISTORICAL  SIGNETS 


portrait  head,  with  the  rim  of  a  shield  showing  in  front,  en¬ 
graved  on  a  light  sard  in  the  King  Collection  at  the  Metro¬ 
politan  Museum,  about  which  Dr.  King  hazards  the  most 
interesting  and  perhaps  not  impossible  guess  that  this  may  be 
the  signet  which  Hannibal  took  from  the  finger  of  the  dead 
consul  and  with  which,  on  forged  letters,  he  is  said  to  have 
tried  to  deceive  several  towns  which  held  to  the  Roman  alliance. 
The  good  Doctor  holds  that  the  likeness  agrees  exactly  with 
that  of  Marcellus  on  the  denarii  of  the  Claudian  gens.  Counter 
to  this  supposition  is  the  fact  that  the  date,  208  B.  C.,  is  very 
early  for  a  Roman  portrait  head  on  a  gem.  See  Plate  XVIII, 
25. 

Publius  Cornelius  Scipio  Africanus. — The  head  of  Sy- 
phax,  King  of  the  Numidians.  This  attribution  is  given  in 
the  Chambers  Encyclopaedia  article  on  gems  and  in  other 
books  of  reference.  I  assume  that  some  original  authority  for 
the  statement  exists  but  I  have  been  quite  unable  to  unearth  it. 

The  son  of  the  native  of  Intercatia,  said  to  have  been  located 
not  far  from  Astorga  in  Spain,  whose  father  was  slain  in 
single  combat  with  Publius  Cornelius  Scipio  JEmilianus,  chose 
a  picture  of  the  duel  for  his  signet  device,  and  Stilo  Prae- 
coninus,  quoted  by  Pliny  (XXXVII,  4),  jokingly  asked  what 
the  man  would  have  done  had  his  father  slain  Scipio.  See, 
also,  Epitome  of  Livy  (Book  XLVIII). 

Gn^us  Scipio  (There  is  some  doubt  as  to  the  full  name) ; 
the  degenerate  son  of  Scipio  Africanus. — His  father’s  por¬ 
trait  (Valerius  Maximus,  III,  5). 

Lucius  Cornelius  Sulla. — According  to  Pliny  (XXXVII, 
4)  and  Plutarch’s  Life  of  Sulla,  the  dictator’s  seal  was  a  pic¬ 
ture  of  the  surrender  to  him,  by  Bocchus,  of  Jugurtha,  probably 
as  it  is  portrayed  on  his  denarii.  Valerius  Maximus  (VII,  14) 
also  mentions  this  device,  but  Dion  Cassius  (XLII,  18)  states 
that,  like  Pompey’s  signet,  Sulla’s  showed  three  trophies,  to 
commemorate  his  victories  over  the  generals  of  Mithridates,  a 
device  borne  on  the  reverse  of  another  of  his  denarii.  Possibly 
the  former  was  changed  for  the  latter  in  his  later  years. 

Gn^dus  Pompeius  Magnus. — According  to  Dion  Cassius 


ROMAN  PERSONAL  SIGNETS 


291 


(XLII,  18),  Pompey’s  signet,  with  which  Caesar  verified  his 
death  to  the  Senate,  also  displayed  three  trophies,  probably  to 
commemorate  his  victories  over  Mithridates,  the  Cilician 
pirates,  and  the  Arabians,  but  Plutarch,  in  his  Life  of  Pompey, 
states  that  the  signet  sent  by  the  murderers  to  Ciesar  showed 
a  lion  with  a  sword  in  its  paw.  These  descriptions  are  neces¬ 
sarily  contradictory  and  the  divergence  cannot  be  explained 
on  the  theory  of  a  change  of  signet. 

Caius  Julius  CiESAK. — A  figure  of  Venus  Victrix  (Dion 
Cassius,  XLIII,  43). 

Publius  Lentulus  Suba  ;  one  of  the  leaders  in  the  con¬ 
spiracy  of  Catiline. — A  portrait  of  his  grandfather,  Publius 
Cornelius  Lentulus,  consul  162  B.  C.  ( Cicero  against  Catiline, 

III,  5). 

Augustus. — His  first  recorded  signet  was  engraved  with 
the  figure  of  a  sphinx;  Pliny  (XXXVII,  4)  stating  that 
Augustus  had  found  two  gems  bearing  this  device  among 
the  effects  of  his  mother,  but  that,  on  his  friends’  joking  him 
about  the  diplomatic  vagueness  of  his  letters  and  edicts  during 
the  times  of  the  civil  wars  and  the  appropriateness  of  the 
sphinx  as  a  seal  for  “enigmas,”  he  adopted  instead  a  gem 
bearing  a  likeness  of  Alexander  the  Great,  perhaps  one  of  the 
famous  smaragdi  engraved  by  Pyrgoteles.  Pliny’s  statement 
here  seems  to  be  exclusive,  but,  earlier  in  the  same  chapter,  he 
tells  of  “A  very  excellent  likeness  of  the  late  Emperor  Augus¬ 
tus”  which  was  engraved  by  Dioskourides  upon  a  signet  which, 
ever  since,  the  Roman  emperors  have  used.  That  would  include 
Domitian.  Dion  Cassius  (LI,  3),  writing  in  the  second  half 
of  the  2nd  century  A.  D.,  says  of  Augustus’  signets :  “He  had 
had  the  seal  which  he  used  most  at  that  time”  (The  Civil 
Wars)  “made  double,  with  a  sphinx  rising  on  both  sides.  Sub¬ 
sequently,  he  had  his  own  image  made  in  intaglio  and  sealed 
everything  with  that.  Later  emperors  likewise  employed  it 
except  Galba.”  Certainly  this  reads  as  if  the  sphinx  seal  was 
a  cameo  which  would  be,  to  say  the  least,  remarkable  and 
unique. 

Caius  Cilnius  Maecenas. — This  famous  connoisseur  and 


292 


HISTORICAL  SIGNETS 


patron  of  the  arts  had  a  frog  engraved  on  his  seal  (Pliny, 
XXXVII,  4). 

Kleopatra. — An  epigram  in  the  Greek  Anthology,  at¬ 
tributed  both  to  Asklepiades  and  to  Antipatros  of  Thessalonika, 
describes  the  signet  of  the  Egyptian  Queen  as  an  amethyst 
engraved  with  a  figure  of  Methe. 

Nero. — While  there  is  no  record  of  its  use  as  his  signet, 
Suetonius  tells  ( Life  of  Nero,  Chap.  46)  that  Sporus,  one  of 
the  emperor’s  favorites,  made  him  a  new-year’s  present  of  a 
ring  with  a  gem  engraved  with  a  picture  of  the  rape  of  Pro¬ 
serpina  :  an  ill-omened  subject,  as  being  emblematic  of  death 
and  a  favorite  device  on  tombs. 

Pallas;  freedman  of  Claudius. — Cav.  Paolo  Alessandro 
Maffei,  in  his  Gemme  Antiche  Figurate  (Vol.  Ill,  p.  182)  tells 
of  a  carnelian  engraved  with  a  picture  of  Bellerophon  spearing 
the  Chimaira,  found  among  the  ashes  in  a  porphyry  urn  in  a 
sumptuous  tomb  on  the  Via  Tiburtina,  about  a  mile  from  Rome. 
Maffei’s  argument,  citing  Pliny  the  Younger  and  Tacitus,  is 
ingenious  and  establishes  a  very  reasonable  probability  that 
this  was,  indeed,  the  signet  of  Pallas.  His  tomb  was  located 
on  the  Via  Tiburtina,  near  the  first  mile-stone,  and  his  claimed 
descent  from  the  “Kings  of  Arcadia,”  while  alleged  in  refer¬ 
ence  to  the  “Arcadians”  who  were  fabled  to  have  settled  on  the 
Palatine  Hill,  was,  doubtless,  suggested  by  his  birth  in 
Arkadia,  in  Peloponnesos,  the  people  of  which  held  close  rela¬ 
tions  with  the  neighboring  city  of  Korinth  where  Bellerophon 
was  the  national  hero. 

Galba. — A  dog  bending  forward  from  the  prow  of  a  ship ; 
his  ancestral  device.  (Dion  Cassius,  LI,  3). 

Hadrian. — His  own  portrait  (Spartianus’  Hadrianus, 
Chap.  26).  This  ring’s  slipping  from  his  finger  while  he  was 
taking  the  auspices  on  new-year’s  day  was  considered  an  omen 
of  his  approaching  death. 

Pliny  the  Younger. — A  quadriga  ( Letters ,  X,  26). 

Commodus. — According  to  Lampridius,  in  his  Life  of  Com- 
modus,  that  emperor  had  a  picture  of  his  mistress,  Marcia, 
garbed  as  an  Amazon.  The  text  does  not  state  that  this  was 


LATER  IMPERIAL  SIGNETS 


293 


a  signet,  but  Capitolinus,  in  his  Life  of  Clodius  Albinus,  quotes 
a  letter  of  Commodus  to  Albinus  in  which  its  seal  is  referred 
to  as  being  the  figure  of  an  Amazon.  The  two  taken  together 
make  it  clear  that  the  emperor’s  signet  was  Marcia,  pictured 
as  an  Amazon. 

Constantius  II. — A  sapphire  with  a  picture  of  the 
Emperor  spearing  a  wild  boar  in  the  plains  of  Caesarea,  the 
locality  being  typified  by  a  recumbent  female  figure  and  the 
legend,  KECAPIA  KATTTTAAOKIA.  The  name,  CONSTANTIVS  AVG, 
identifies  the  signet,  which  is  owned  by  Prince  Trivulzio  of 
Milan. 

Mabcia;  daughter  of  Stilicho  and  wife  of  Honorius, 
first  Emperor  of  the  West. — A  note  to  Book  XXXVII,  Chap. 
16,  in  the  Bonn  translation  of  Pliny  tells  of  an  emerald  found  in 
her  tomb  in  1593  and  “now”  in  the  Vatican  with  the  head  of 
her  husband  engraved  upon  it. 

Mauritius;  Emperor  of  the  East,  578-602  A.  D. — King 
states,  in  his  Handbook  of  Engraved  Gems,  that  the  great  seal 
of  this  emperor,  a  chalcedony,  2  by  V/z  inches  in  size,  bearing 
his  bust  in  full  face,  with  the  orb  of  empire  in  his  hand  and 
the  legend,  D.  N.  MAVRITIVS.  P.  P.  AVG.,  was  catalogued  in  the 
sale  of  the  Mertens-Schaafhausen  Cabinet  in  1859,  as  hav¬ 
ing  been  dug  up  at  Grafin  near  Bonn,  and  speaks  of  the 
gem  as  the  most  important  example  of  its  class  anywhere 
extant.  In  his  Antique  Gems  and  Rings  he  refers  to  the  same 
stone  as  having  been  heired  by  Madame  Mertens-Schaafhausen 
of  Bonn  with  the  rest  of  the  Praun  gems,  and  goes  on  to  state, 
with  his  usual  looseness  and  proneness  to  contradiction,  that 
“It  has  a  somewhat  suspicious  look  about  it  and  may,  after 
all,  be  nothing  more  than  a  work  of  the  Renaissance.” 

Phocas  ;  the  murderer  and  successor  of  Mauritius. — The 
same  authority  also  speaks  of  the  seal  of  Phocas,  as  being  in 
the  cabinet  of  M.  Montigny  of  Paris :  a  portrait  in  all  respects 
similar  to  the  full-face  likeness  on  the  solidi,  1  by  3/4  inches 
in  size  and  done  on  a  lapis  lazuli. 

Comnenus. — The  seal  of  a  prince  of  this  house  in  the 
twelfth  century  is  referred  to  by  King  as  No.  49  in  the  De  la 


294 


HISTORICAL  SIGNETS 


Turbie  Cabinet:  a  carnelian  adorned  with  arabesques,  quite 
in  the  Saracenic  style,  which  encircle  the  legend,  KOMNHNOC 
TOY  CEBACTOY  (Comnenus,  son  of  Augustus). 

Alaric;  King  of  the  Goths. — A  bust  in  full  face,  poorly 
done  on  a  sapphire  and  inscribed,  ALARICVS  REX  GOTHORVM. 
Described  by  King  as  being  in  the  Vienna  Cabinet. 


DESCRIPTION  AND  EXPLANATION  OF  PLATES 


DESCRIPTION  AND  EXPLANATION  OF  PLATES 


In  earlier  works  on  this  subject  there  has  been  a  tendency  to 
ignore  in  the  illustrations  the  great  mass  of  ordinary  and  poor 
gems  which  are,  nevertheless,  highly  interesting  to  the  student  and 
much  more  obtainable  by  collectors  than  are  the  masterpieces  of 
ancient  art.  In  these  plates  I  have  tried  to  give  such  stones  an 
adequate  representation.  Where  ownership  is  not  otherwise  indi¬ 
cated  the  examples  are  in  my  own  collection,  and  where  ownership 
is  noted  as  unknown  or  the  gem  as  having  belonged  to  some  one 
of  the  great  collections  that  have  been  dispersed  I  have  been  cour¬ 
teously  permitted  to  avail  myself  of  the  collection  of  casts  owned  by 
Tiffany  &  Co.  of  New  York. 


PLATE  I 

Minoan  Gems 

(These  stones  are  bored  through  the  longer  axis.) 

1.  Yellowish  chalcedony  from  Crete,  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

56).  Long  parallelopiped  with  the  four  unbored  sides  en¬ 
graved  as  follows: 

(a)  A  ship  with  rigged  mast  and  oars  and  what  seem 
like  two  crescents  above;  also  a  figure  like  a  St.  Andrew’s 
cross  with  a  ball  at  the  end  of  each  arm,  and  a  third  object 
which  is  undeterminable.  There  is  a  suggestion  of  a  double 
line  border  along  two  of  the  sides. 

(b)  Divided  in  three  parts  by  double  lines.  These  bear 
pictographic  symbols  the  first  two  of  which  are  undetermin¬ 
able.  The  third  is  an  eye. 

(c)  Pictographs,  among  which  are  recognizable  a  human 
leg,  a  double  circle,  and  a  plant  of  some  kind. 

(d)  Pictographs,  including  a  plough  (?),  scissors  (?), 
saw  (?),  and  two  of  the  same  kind  of  cross  figures  as  on 
“  a.” 

2.  Hematite,  from  Crete,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  74). 

Glandular  stone  with  truncated  ends. 

Two  oxen,  of  one  of  which  only  the  head  is  shown.  Be¬ 
fore  the  other  is  a  man,  his  body  distorted  to  fit  in  the  field 

297 


298 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


of  the  gem  in  which,  also,  are  several  symbols,  probably  of  the 
Minoan  script. 

3.  Dark  reddish  steatite,  from  Crete,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  34).  Lens-shaped  stone. 

Two  lions  arranged  heraldically  with  fore-feet  on  a 
pedestal  between  them  and  heads  regardant.  Above  is  a  sun. 

4.  Agate,  from  Crete,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  81,133).  Three- 

sided  stone.  The  three  faces  are  ovals,  and  all  are  engraved 
very  crudely. 

(a)  An  animal  of  some  sort,  probably  a  cow. 

(b)  Three  objects  that  look  like  archery  targets. 

(c)  Four  circles,  three  of  them  double,  each  surmounted 
by  a  ball. 

5.  Carnelian,  from  Crete,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  2). 

Lens-shaped  stone. 

A  female  figure  wearing  a  diadem  and  a  bell-shaped  skirt 
and  shooting  a  bow.  Evidently  some  goddess,  perhaps  Rhea  or 
Artemis.  She  seems  to  be  girt  with  a  sword  and  has  a  quiver 
on  her  back.  The  full,  bare  bosom  indicates  fruitfulness. 

6.  Red  and  white  agate,  from  Crete,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

50).  Stone  with  three  convex,  oval  sides,  all  engraved. 

(a)  A  ship  with  two  masts  and  sails. 

(b)  A  female  figure,  undoubtedly  some  goddess,  in  a  bell¬ 
shaped  skirt  with  deep  border.  She  bears  a  branch  in  her 
hand,  and  behind  her  there  seems  to  be  a  similar  object. 

(c)  A  fish. 

7.  Light  greenish  steatite,  from  Crete,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  62).  Stone  with  three  almost  rectangular  sides,  all  en¬ 
graved  by  hand  in  crude,  early  fashion. 

(a)  Three  fishes. 

(b)  A  demon-like  figure,  before  whom  stands  a  spear 
or  staff,  from  which  four  roundish  objects  seem  to  be 
hanging. 

(c)  Two  men  and  a  bird. 

8.  Carnelian,  from  Crete,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  78). 

Lens-shaped  stone  calcined  by  fire. 

Three  men,  the  middle  one  with  a  three-cornered  head 
(some  demon?)  or  wearing  a  three-cornered  hat  or  helmet. 
The  first  seems  to  be  leaping.  Possibly  it  represents  athletic 
games. 

9.  Serpentine,  from  Crete,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  12). 

Lens-shaped  stone. 


MYCEN2EAN  GEMS 


299 


A  demonic  figure,  with  an  animal’s  head,  bearing  a  dead 
stag  on  his  shoulder.  Before  him  is  a  bush  and,  on  each  side, 
a  star,  perhaps  merely  to  fill  the  field. 

10.  Hematite,  from  Crete,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  75). 

Lens-shaped  stone. 

A  naked  man,  in  distorted  attitude,  seizing  a  bull  by  the 
horn.  Perhaps  it  pictures  some  sport  of  the  Cretan  bull- 
ring. 

11.  Carnelian,  from  Knossos,  Crete,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

79).  Glandular  stone. 

Two-horse  chariot  with  curious  pole  arrangement  sim¬ 
ilar  to  that  found  in  Assyrian  sculptures.  The  driver  holds 
the  reins  high  and  has  a  whip  with  two  lashes.  At  each  end 
of  the  picture  double  decorative  lines  are  used  to  fill  the  field. 


PLATE  II 

Mycen.ean  Gems 

(These  stones  are  bored  through  the  longer  aans.) 

1.  Rock-crystal,  from  Phigalia,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  10). 

Lens-shaped  stone. 

A  naked  man,  undoubtedly  a  god,  standing  between  two 
demonic  figures  which  he  is  holding,  as  it  appears,  by  their 
tongues.  The  monsters  have  horse-like  heads,  lion’s  legs, 
human  arms,  and  lower  bodies  like  those  of  insects. 

2.  Agate,  from  Athens,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  43).  Glan¬ 

dular  stone. 

A  griffin  (?)  swooping  down  with  wide  spread  wings 
upon  a  running  lion  which  turns  its  head  to  defend  itself. 

3.  Darkish  carnelian,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  01,  7572).  Lens¬ 

shaped  stone. 

A  bull  (or  cow)  turning  to  lick  its  hind  foot. 

4.  Carnelian,  from  Peloponnesos,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

40).  Glandular  stone. 

A  man,  with  long  hair,  spearing  a  boar  in  a  marsh. 

5.  Banded  agate,  from  Peloponnesos,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  20).  Lens-shaped  stone. 

A  bull,  falling,  with  a  spear  thrust  into  its  neck. 

6.  Brown-red  jasper  with  small  white  spots,  in  Berlin  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  48) .  Glandular  stone. 


300 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


A  confused  design,  perhaps  meant  to  represent  a  wood  or 
thicket.  The  introduction  of  several  crescents  in  the  pic¬ 
ture  doubtless  has  some  significance. 

7.  Mottled  red  and  grayish  jasper,  in  Boston  Museum  (No. 

01,7563).  Lens-shaped  stone. 

A  bull  with  head  turned  as  if  licking  his  back.  Below  is 
an  ornament  shaped  somewhat  like  the  Mycenaean  shield. 
Above  the  back  are  two  ornaments  that  may  be  meant  to  rep¬ 
resent  sacred  knots,  like  the  ivory  one  from  Knossos  figured 
in  Vol.  IX  of  the  Annual  of  the  British  School  at  Athens,  p.  8. 

8.  Amethyst,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  01,7567).  Glandular  stone 

with  truncated  ends. 

A  lion,  with  head  turned  back,  pierced  by  an  arrow. 

9.  Banded  agate,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  22).  Lens-shaped 

stone. 

A  bullock,  with  tongue  hanging  out  and  a  short  sword 
thrust  in  the  back  of  its  neck,  lying  on  what  is,  doubtless, 
intended  to  represent  an  altar.  A  palm  tree  curving  around 
part  of  the  rim  of  the  stone  may  suggest  the  grove  of 
a  neighboring  temple.  Evidently  the  picture  shows  a 
sacrifice. 

10.  Hematite,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  80).  Glandular  stone 

with  truncated  ends. 

A  male  figure  with  drapery  about  his  hips,  holding  up  a 
fish  by  the  line  with  which  he  has  caught  it. 

11.  Hematite,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  37).  Lens-shaped 

stone. 

A  bull  attacked  by  a  lion  and  a  griffin.  All  three  are 
drawn  in  curious  distorted  attitudes,  so  as  to  fit  the  field. 
The  bull’s  head  is  in  full  front  and  exaggerated  for  decorative 
effect. 

12.  Sardonyx,  from  Elis,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  3).  Lens¬ 

shaped  stone. 

A  woman,  evidently  a  goddess,  perhaps  Artemis,  holding 
up  a  goat  by  the  horns  to  symbolize  her  sway  over  animals. 
The  upper  part  of  her  body  is  bare,  with  the  breasts  em¬ 
phasized,  and  she  wears  a  bell-shaped,  decorated  skirt. 

13.  Carnelian,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  01,7574).  Flat,  almond- 

shaped  stone. 

Two  antelopes  lying  down,  one  with  its  head  turned  back. 

14.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  55).  Lens-shaped 

stone. 


GEMS  OF  THE  GREEK  MIDDLE  AGES 


301 


Two  ibexes  arranged  heraldically  with  forefeet  raised 
and  heads  regardant. 

15.  Serpentine,  from  Athens,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6). 

Lens-shaped  stone. 

Two  men,  with  bird-like  heads,  rushing  at  each  other, 
grasping  each  other’s  heads,  and  stabbing  with  short  swords. 
Several  round  objects  in  the  field  may  represent  stones  which 
they  have  thrown. 

16.  Steatite,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  30).  Lens-shaped 

stone. 

A  lion  looking  upward  toward  a  griffin  that  hovers  above 
him  with  spread  wings. 

17.  Agate  (calcined),  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  43).  Short 

hemicylindrical  stone,  broader  in  the  middle. 

Two  goats,  one  with  head  turned  back.  Two  bushes  are 
arranged  so  as  to  fill  the  field. 

18.  Red  jasper,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  98,713).  Lens-shaped 

stone. 

A  cow  suckling  a  calf. 

19.  Agate,  with  vertical  bands  of  bluish  white  and  yellowish  brown, 

in  Boston  Museum  (No.  01,  7582).  Rectangular  stone. 

A  man  falling  beneath  a  bull. 

20.  Chalcedony,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  01,7548).  Lens-shaped 

stone. 

A  cow  suckling  a  calf.  Around  part  of  the  rim  bends  a 
thistle-like  plant. 

21.  Brown  and  white  striped  agate,  from  Peloponnesos,  in  Berlin 

Museum  (Catal.  No.  49).  Stone  with  three  convex  sides,  two 
of  which  are  engraved. 

On  the  one  shown  here  are  two  boars  lying  down  with 
rushes  rising  over  them.  Several  oblique  lines  fill  the  exergue. 


PLATE  III 

Gems  op  the  Greek  Middle  Ages 

(These  stones  are  bored  through  the  longer  axis  except  when  other¬ 
wise  stated.) 

1.  Greenish  mica-slate,  from  Megara,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 
No.  80).  Flat,  round  stone  with  the  upper  side  smaller  and 
engraved  on  both  sides. 


302 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


(a)  On  the  larger  surface  are  the  foreparts  of  two 
horses  in  reversed  positions  and  joined  to  one  body.  In  the 
field  are  three  bushes. 

(b)  On  the  smaller  surface  is  a  demonic  figure  with 
wings  hanging  down  from  his  shoulders. 

2.  Whitish  steatite  searaboid,  from  Cyprus,  in  Berlin  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  71). 

A  chariot  or  cart  carrying  three  men  and  drawn  by  one 
horse.  Probably  a  second  is  to  be  assumed  to  be  beyond  him. 

3.  Soft  whitish  stone  searaboid,  from  Asia  Minor. 

A  rudely  drawn  animal  (goat  or  bull)  with  a  bush  be¬ 
fore  it. 

4.  Steatite  searaboid,  from  Kamiros,  in  British  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  130). 

Rosette  made  up  of  eight  leaves.  Cable  border. 

5.  Serpentine,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  97).  Flat  rect¬ 

angular  stone,  engraved  on  both  sides. 

(a)  A  central  disk  with  rays. 

(b)  A  bull  sinking  on  one  knee,  with  head  turned  back 
and  a  crescent  in  the  field  above  him. 

6.  Serpentine,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  102).  Scarab-like 

stone  with  a  crouching  lion  in  place  of  the  beetle  relief. 

A  man  holding  a  horse  by  the  head.  Above  the  horse  is  a 
bird  and  beneath  him  what  may  be  meant  for  a  fish. 

7.  Steatite  scarab,  from  Kamiros,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

142). 

The  tree  of  life,  beneath  which  are  two  oxen  (?)  ar¬ 
ranged  symmetrically  with  heads  bent  down.  Under  each 
of  them  is  an  Egyptian  crux  ansata. 

8.  Bright  green  steatite,  from  Beirut,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  78).  Flat  seal  with  a  bored  handle. 

Two  men,  apparently  about  to  cut  down  a  large  stalk  of 
grain  or,  perhaps,  a  tree  which  stands  between  them. 

Island  Stones 

(These  stones  are  bored  through  the  longer  axis  except  when  other¬ 
wise  stated.) 

9.  Yellowish  steatite,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  82).  Lens¬ 

shaped  stone. 

Herakles  contending  with  a  sea-demon  whose  body  is 
covered  with  scales  and  ends  in  a  fish’s  tail.  Perhaps  it  is 


ISLAND  STONES 


303 


the  one  from  whom  he  rescued  the  daughter  of  Laomedon. 
The  hero  is  nude,  bearded,  and  has  a  quiver  slung  on  his  back. 
Two  fishes  fill  the  field  of  the  gem. 

10.  Whitish  steatite,  from  the  Greek  islands,  in  British  Museum. 

Lens-shaped  stone. 

A  winged  sea-horse.  Half  the  rim  of  the  field  is  filled 
with  two  lines  of  joined  drill  holes  which  form  a  sort  of  ir¬ 
regular  half-border. 

11.  Steatite,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  24).  Lens-shaped  stone. 

Pegasos. 

12.  Steatite,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  56).  Lens-shaped 

stone. 

A  goat  with  its  body  distorted  and  hind  legs  raised  so 
as  to  fill  the  field  above  its  back.  A  drill-hole  and  a  feather 
motive  decoration  are  also  introduced  for  the  same  purpose. 

13.  Light  greenish,  translucent  steatite,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  92).  Glandular  stone. 

A  boar  with  head  down,  as  if  feeding.  Two  lines  dec¬ 
orate  the  back  of  the  gem. 

14.  Meerschaumlike  stone,  from  Melos,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  96).  Lens-shaped  gem,  engraved  on  both  sides. 

Chimaira.  In  the  field  are  four  drill-holes  and  several 
lines  with  cross  strokes.  The  exergue  is  filled  with  a  row  of 
downward  strokes.  On  the  other  side  of  this  gem  (not 
figured)  are  a  man  and  woman  in  an  obscene  attitude. 

15.  Light  greenish,  translucent  steatite,  from  the  Greek  islands, 

in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  90).  Lens-shaped  stone. 

A  wild  goat  (or  ibex)  leaping,  with  head  turned  back. 
Characteristic  feather  decoration  in  the  field. 

16.  Steatite,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  86).  Glandular  stone. 

A  griffin  with  head  turned  back. 

17.  Grayish  green  steatite,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  81). 

Lens-shaped  stone  engraved  on  both  sides. 

(a)  A  naked  man,  stretched  on  his  back,  with  a  large 
bird  attacking  him ;  perhaps  Prometheus  and  the  eagle. 

(b)  A  pattern  of  symmetrically  arranged  lines. 


304 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


PLATE  IV 

Archaic  Greek  Gems  of  the  Sixth  Century,  B.  C.,  and  the  First 
Twenty  Years  of  the  Fifth 

(These  stones  are  bored  through  the  longer  axis  except  when  other¬ 
wise  stated.) 

1.  Rock-crystal  scaraboid,  from  Cyprus,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  140). 

Seilenos,  reclining,  with  a  kantharos  in  his  hand.  By 
his  knee  stands  a  two-handled  vessel  for  mixing  wine.  The 
hair  and  beard  are  treated  in  the  early  manner  of  archaic 
art. 

2.  Carnelian  scarab,  from  Corneto,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

137). 

Tityos,  with  long  hair  and  beard,  kneeling  and  trying  to 
draw  the  arrow  from  his  side.  Early  Greek  work  for  the 
Etruscan  market.  The  border  is  especially  ornate. 

3.  Light  translucent  carnelian  scaraboid,  in  Berlin  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  173). 

It  is  engraved  on  top,  bottom,  and  along  both  sides. 
Only  the  first  two  are  here  pictured.  Both  have  the  cable 
border. 

(a)  On  the  flat  base,  a  lion  with  a  dolphin  above  and  an 
ear  of  grain  below. 

(b)  On  the  convex  top,  a  four-horse  chariot  represented 
in  full  front.  The  driver  seems  to  be  nude  and  is  raising  his 
arm.  A  zigzag  line  fills  the  exergue.  The  work  is  appar¬ 
ently  of  the  end  of  the  sixth  or  the  early  fifth  century. 

4.  Chalcedony  scarab  with  light  brownish  spots,  from  Greece,  in 

Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  156). 

A  nude,  unbearded  warrior  with  spear  and  shield.  Done 
very  much  in  the  style  of  the  West  Aigeinetan  pediment.  Cable 
border.  Work  of  about  the  same  period  as  No.  3,  above. 

5.  Plasma,  probably  cut  down  from  either  a  scarab  or  a  scaraboid, 

in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  299). 

Diomedes,  nude  and  stretched  on  a  sort  of  bier,  while  his 
four  man-eating  horses  stand  above,  one  of  them  biting  him. 
Herakles  stands  by  his  head,  and  a  palm  tree  rises  at  the  left. 
Cable  border.  End  of  sixth  century. 

6.  Hematite  scarab,  from  Aigeina,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

124). 

A  winged  goddess,  draped,  probably  Artemis,  holding 


ARCHAIC  GREEK  GEMS 


305 


up  a  lion  and  a  goat  by  their  tails.  Cable  border.  Work  of 
the  early  sixth  century. 

7.  Plasma  scarab  (calcined?),  from  Falerii,  in  Berlin  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  136). 

Herakles,  bearded  and  wearing  his  lion’s  skin,  contend¬ 
ing  with  the  river-god  Acheloos  who  is  represented  as  a  bull 
with  a  manlike  face  and  whose  power  of  transformation  is 
suggested  by  the  serpent  and  the  dolphin  in  the  field. 
Herakles  is  grasping  him  by  the  horn  and  tail.  Cable  border. 
The  exergue  is  filled  with  cross-hatchings.  Early  Ionian 
work  done  for  the  Etruscan  market. 

8.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  161). 

A  draped  figure  the  sex  of  which  is  uncertain  reclining 
on  the  back  of  a  running  bull  and  holding  him  by  the  horn. 
It  may  be  meant  for  Europe  or,  if  male,  for  Dionysos.  The 
shape  of  the  garment  argues  for  the  former  hypothesis,  but 
the  fact  that  the  rider  looks  a  little  as  if  meant  to  be  bearded 
might  negative  such  a  supposition.  The  crudeness  of  the 
work  on  the  very  small  figure,  however,  leaves  the  point  un¬ 
certain.  The  engraving  is  polished.  Border  of  joined  drill¬ 
holes.  Probably  rather  early  sixth  century  work. 

9.  Black  jasper  scarab,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  164). 

Head  of  a  negro  in  a  high  crested  helmet.  Cable  border. 
Work  of  the  early  transition  period,  still  showing  signs  of  the 
severe  style. 

10.  Black  jasper  scaraboid,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  175). 

A  cow  suckling  a  calf.  The  engraving  is  highly  polished. 
Cable  border.  Probably  sixth  century  work. 

11.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  162). 

A  bearded  head  done  in  severe  style.  Cable  border. 
Early  work  of  the  sixth  century. 

12.  Translucent  carnelian  scarab,  from  Aigeina,  in  Berlin  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  157). 

A  bearded,  naked  man  kneeling  with  both  hands  to  his 
breast.  The  hair  and  beard  are  done  with  the  drill.  Cable 
border.  Probably  later  sixth  century  work. 

13.  Translucent,  diagonally  striped  sardonyx  scarab,  in  Berlin  Mu¬ 

seum  (Catal.  No.  168). 

A  lion  devouring  a  bull.  Cable  border.  Probably  mid¬ 
dle  sixth  century  work. 

14.  Carnelian  scaraboid.  from  Greece,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  176). 


306 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


A  nude  negro  in  a  squatting  position.  The  breast  and 
belly  are  very  crudely  done.  Cable  border.  Sixth  century 
work. 

15.  Scarab  of  opaque  white  stone,  from  Melos,  in  Berlin  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  154). 

A  crouching  demon,  like  those  of  the  Mycenaean  epoch, 
with  the  upper  part  of  a  lion  and  the  lower  part  human. 
The  surface  of  the  stone  is  damaged  and  no  border  shows  in 
the  cast.  Probably  sixth  century  work. 

16.  Rock-crystal  scarab,  from  Crete,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  141). 

A  sphinx  seizing  a  naked  man  whom  she  has  over¬ 
thrown.  The  hair  is  worked  out  in  the  older  style.  Cable 
border.  Engraving  unpolished.  Work  of  not  later  than  the 
middle  of  the  sixth  century. 

17.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  160). 

An  unbearded  Hermes  in  a  kneeling  position,  wearing  the 
petasos  and  nude  but  for  a  scarf  thrown  over  his  shoulders. 
He  carries  his  caduceus.  Very  fine  work  of  the  late  transi¬ 
tion  period  with  the  muscles  and  the  linea  alba  well  worked 
out.  The  engraving  is  highly  polished.  Cable  border. 

18.  Carnelian  scarab,  from  Italy,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

169). 

A  human  leg  with  the  knee  bent  up  and  the  genitals 
showing,  beyond  which  the  figure  ends  in  the  forefront  of  a 
horse.  A  drill-hole  occupies  the  field  above.  Cable  border. 
Probably  south  Italian  Greek  work  of  the  later  sixth  century 
or  early  transition  period. 

19.  Bluish  black,  white  speckled  agate  scarab,  from  the  Troas,  in 

Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  159). 

A  nude  woman,  probably  a  Naiad,  in  kneeling  attitude, 
holding  a  hydra  (water  jar)  into  which  water  is  running  from 
a  lion-head  spout.  She  wears  a  hood  and  ear-ring.  Inscrip¬ 
tion,  SiHMONO^  (of  Semon).  Furtwangler  holds  this  to  be  the 
name  of  the  artist,  in  the  genitive,  but  it  seems  to  me  at 
least  as  likely  to  be  that  of  the  owner.  Cable  border.  Strik¬ 
ing  Ionic  work  of  the  transition  period. 

20.  Greenish  jasper  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

241). 

An  unbearded  Scythian  archer  fleeing  and  turning  to 
loose  his  arrow  at  some  pursuing  foe.  Cable  border. 

21.  Green  jasper  scarab,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  98,714). 


ARCHAIC  GREEK  GEMS 


307 


A  lion  attacking  a  boar.  Cable  border.  Sixth  century- 
work  showing  Phoenician  influence. 

22.  Green  jasper  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  239). 

A  warrior  running  with  bent  knee  action,  with  helmet, 
shield,  lance,  and  crude  suggestion  of  mantle.  Cable  border. 
Poor  sixth  century  work. 

23.  Carnelian  scarab  with  a  seiren  substituted  for  the  beetle  relief, 

in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  248). 

Nude,  kneeling  figure  of  the  Hyacinthine  Apollo,  his  lyre 
under  his  arm  and  holding  a  flower.  Similar  to  the  type  on 
the  Tarentine  coinage.  Cable  border. 

24.  Banded  agate  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  265). 

Herakles,  nude  and  armed  with  his  club,  raising  one 
foot  to  bind  his  sandal.  An  early  appearance  of  the  sandal¬ 
binding  motive  in  the  late  archaic  period. 


PLATE  V 

Archaic  Greek  Gems  ( concluded ) 

(These  stones  are  bored  through  the  longer  axis  except  when  other¬ 
wise  stated.) 

1.  Grayish  brown  and  white  agate  scarab,  in  British  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  289). 

Seilenos  in  a  bent-over  attitude,  apparently  dancing  and 
holding  a  goblet  in  his  hand.  At  his  feet  is  a  large  wine 
krater.  He  has  horse’s  ears  and  hoofs,  and  his  hair  and 
beard  are  done  entirely  with  drill-holes.  The  belly  muscles 
are  shown  in  three  folds,  in  the  style  of  the  early  archaic 
art.  Cable  border.  The  engraving  has  no  polish.  Sixth 
century  work. 

2.  Bright  greenish,  half  translucent  steatite,  in  scarab  form  but 

with  a  satyr’s  head  instead  of  the  beetle  relief,  in  British 
Museum  (Catal.  No.  479). 

A  bearded  citharist  in  a  long  tunic,  crowned  with  a  dia¬ 
dem  and  holding  a  lyre  and  plectrum.  One  foot  is  raised, 
resting  on  a  rock.  Around  the  edge  runs  the  inscription  in 
damaged  letters,  PI  EflOIE^E^held  to  be  the  signature 
of  Syries,  an  Euboian  artist  of  the  Ionic  School,  though  the 
letters  are  much  the  worse  for  age  and  have  been  differently 
read.  Cable  border. 


308 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


3.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  333). 

Herakles,  unbearded  and  nude,  without  his  lion’s  skin 
but  bearing  club,  bow,  and  quiver.  The  work  is  of  the  sixth 
century  and  seems  to  show  some  Phoenician  influence  as  does 
the  simple  line  border. 

4.  Grayish  white  banded  agate  scarab,  from  Sicily,  in  British 

Museum  (Catal.  No.  295). 

A  centaur  with  long  hair,  beard,  horse’s  ears,  and  nose 
of  the  Seilenos  type  carrying  off  a  woman  dressed  in  a  long 
tunic.  His  fore  legs  are  human  and  the  horse’s  body  begins 
at  the  buttocks  of  the  Seilenos  figure.  He  has  double  genitals. 
The  engraving  is  unpolished.  Cable  border.  Sixth  century 
work. 

5.  Carnelian  in  scarab  form  but  with  a  negro’s  head  instead  of  the 

beetle  relief,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  471). 

Flying  seiren  with  a  wreath  (or  pearl  necklace)  in  her 
hand.  She  wears  a  cap  with  a  long  streamer  decorating  it. 
Cable  border. 

6.  Translucent  carnelian  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

264). 

A  kneeling  female  demon  with  four  wings  and  a  cow’s  (  ?) 
head.  Cable  border.  The  conception  seems  to  show  an  Ori¬ 
ental  influence. 

7.  Rock-crystal  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  249). 

Winged  Nike  with  a  flower  in  one  hand  and  holding  up 
her  drapery  with  the  other.  The  right  knee  is  sharply  bent 
and  she  wears  a  hood.  Border  of  drill-holes.  Sixth  century 
work. 

8.  Translucent  carnelian  scarab  (calcined),  in  British  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  250). 

A  kneeling  warrior  in  helmet  and  Ionic  corselet  carrying 
a  naked  dead  man  on  his  shoulder.  Probably  Menelaos  and 
Patroklos.  Cable  border. 

9.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  266). 

Herakles,  unbearded,  nude,  and  without  the  lion’s  skin, 
brandishing  his  club  and  carrying  the  tripod.  The  dog, 
Kerberos,  runs  beside  him,  three  serpents  rising  from  his 
back.  A  star  decorates  the  field.  Border  of  joined  drill¬ 
holes.  Sixth  century  work. 

10.  Bluish  chalcedony  cone  with  eight-sided  base  like  the  later 
Assyrian,  Babylonian,  and  Persian  shapes.  The  boring  does 
not  run  through.  In  Boston  Museum  (No.  95.80). 


ARCHAIC  GREEK  GEMS 


309 


Herakles  in  a  short  tunic  and  with  a  short  beard.  His 
head  and  legs  are  in  profile  but  his  back  is  turned  to  the 
front.  In  one  hand  he  holds  his  club  and  with  the  other  a 
lion  by  the  head.  Facing  him  is  Medousa,  also  in  a  tunic, 
with  head  and  body  shown  full  front  and  legs  in  profile. 
She  is  winged  and  carries  two  lions  by  the  tails.  Her  head 
is  of  the  terror  inspiring  type  with  serpent  locks  rising  from 
it.  Ionic  work  of  the  sixth  century  showing  strong  Oriental 
influence. 

11.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  321). 

A  man  driving  a  two-horse  chariot.  Behind  him  another 
man  with  a  horse  are  facing  in  the  opposite  direction.  Cable 
border.  Ionic  work  of  the  sixth  century. 

12.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  233). 

A  winged  demon  of  the  Seilenos  type  with  the  hind  half 
of  a  lion  joined  to  his  buttocks,  kneeling  on  one  knee  and 
holding  a  goat  by  the  fore  leg  and  horn.  Cable  border,  the 
exergue  filled  with  cross-hatching.  Sixth  century  work  show¬ 
ing  Phoenician  influence. 

13.  Bluish  chalcedony  cone,  like  No.  10,  in  Boston  Museum. 

Two  birds  of  prey  devouring  a  dead  goat.  Behind  is  a 
bush. 

14.  Translucent  light  brown  sard  scarab  or  scaraboid  cut  away  to 

the  line  of  the  boring,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  N.  Y.  (King 
Coll.,  Catal.  No.  311). 

A  winged  sphinx  crouching  down  in  front  and  holding 
a  twig  or  flower  in  her  fore-paws.  Her  hair  is  tied  up  in  a 
large  bunch  at  the  top  of  her  head.  Cable  border. 

15.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  475). 

A  nude  youth,  perhaps  Apollo,  kneeling  and  playing  a 
lyre.  The  short  hair  is  done  entirely  with  the  drill,  and  the 
stomach  muscles  are  shown  by  four  bands.  Cable  border. 
Sixth  century  work. 

16.  Carnelian  scarab  (slightly  calcined),  in  British  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  279). 

A  nude  athlete  leaning  on  a  staff  and  with  an  oil-flask 
hanging  from  his  arm.  Sixth  century  work. 

17.  Bluish  chalcedony  cone,  like  Nos.  10  and  13,  in  Metropolitan 

Museum,  New  York  (King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  3). 

Hermes,  unbearded  and  draped  in  a  long  Ionic  tunic, 
with  his  caduceus  over  his  shoulder  and  a  flower  in  his  hand. 
His  feet  are  winged  and  his  hair  long  behind.  On  his  head 


310 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


is  a  curious  cap  ornamented  by  a  long  feather  that  curves 
forward.  An  eagle  or  hawk  stands  before  him.  Ionic  work 
of  the  sixth  century. 

18.  Rock-crystal  of  long  rectangular  form,  in  Boston  Museum  (No. 

01.7594). 

A  bearded  Triton  wearing  a  cap  or  a  fillet  about  his  head 
and  with  his  hair  gathered  in  a  bunch  behind. 

19.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

A  nude,  helmeted  horseman  riding  with  both  legs  on 
one  side  of  his  steed  and  carrying  a  spear.  A  round  shield 
with  a  Gorgon  head  on  it  hangs  at  his  back.  A  dog  is  shown 
under  the  horse  and,  beneath  that,  a  panther  mask,  full  face. 
Cable  border.  Probably  work  of  the  transition  period. 

20.  Chalcedony  scarab  or  scaraboid  cut  down,  from  Tortosa,  in 

Ribliothbque  Nationale,  Paris  (Coll.  Luynes,  No.  262). 

Herakles  kneeling,  nude  and  unbearded,  and  carrying  a 
lion  over  his  shoulder.  His  club  shows  behind  him,  and  un¬ 
der  it  is  cut  a  Cypriote  or  Phoenician  (  ?)  sign,  Sixth  cen¬ 
tury  work. 

21.  Carnelian  scaraboid,  from  Cyprus,  in  Metropolitan  Museum, 

New  York  (Cesnola  Coll.,  No.  149). 

A  winged  youth  of  the  Eros  type  carrying  away  in  his 
flight  a  nude  maiden  who  holds  a  lyre  in  her  hand.  The  Mu¬ 
seum  authorities  describe  this  picture  as  a  representation  of 
Boreas  and  Oreithyia,  but  Furtwangler,  with,  I  think,  sounder 
reason,  argues  that  it  signifies  merely  the  conquest  of  Eros 
over  some  maiden.  One  cannot  but  fancy  how  perfect  a 
signet  this  would  be  for  some  poetess  like  Sappho.  Line  bor¬ 
der.  Sixth  century  work. 

22.  Rock-crystal  scaraboid,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  01,7558). 

Medousa,  winged  and  with  the  hind  half  of  a  horse  joined 
to  her  buttocks,  seizing  a  lion.  She  wears  a  long  garment. 
The  face  is  shown  full  front  and  is  of  the  same  type  as  No. 
10,  above.  A  zigzag  line  fills  the  exergue.  Cable  border. 
Sixth  century  work. 

23.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  290). 

Seilenos  kneeling,  nude,  with  a  goblet  in  one  hand  and  a 
jug  in  the  other.  He  has  horse’s  ears,  a  bald  forehead,  and 
long  hair  behind.  Cable  border.  Sixth  century  work. 

24.  Light,  translucent  carnelian  scarab,  in  Boston  Museum  (No. 

98,729). 

Herakles,  unbearded  and  with  lion’s  skin,  its  mask  ar- 


GRiECO-PHCENICIAN  GEMS 


311 


ranged  as  a  hood  and  the  feet  hanging  down  between  his 
legs.  His  quiver  hangs  at  his  side,  and  his  bow  and  arrows 
are  in  one  hand  while  he  raises  his  club  in  the  other.  Be¬ 
fore  him  is  a  small  nude  figure  with  long  hair  and  hands 
raised  as  if  in  supplication — possibly  a  worshipper.  The 
exergue  is  filled  with  cross-lines.  Border  of  joined  drill¬ 
holes.  Sixth  century  work. 

25.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  Thebes,  in  Boston  Museum  (No. 
98,720). 

A  lion  attacking  a  bull.  In  the  left  field  a  tortoise  is 
shown  and  in  the  right  a  figure  like  a  modified  Oriental 
winged  disk. 


PLATE  VI 

Gr^co-Phcenician  Gems 

(These  stones  are  bored  through  the  longer  axis  except  uohen  other¬ 
wise  stated.) 

1.  Camelian  scaraboid  (unbored),  in  Biblioth&que  Nationale, 

Paris  (Coll.  Chabouillet,  No.  1081). 

In  the  middle  stands  an  Egyptian  king  wearing  an  apron 
and  the  crown  of  Upper  and  Lower  Egypt  with  the  uraeus  in 
front  and  carrying  a  sceptre.  He  is  unbearded  but  shows 
the  royal  lock  of  hair.  This  marks  him  as  the  “  Golden  Horus, 
son  of  Ra,”  one  of  the  titles  of  the  Pharaohs.  The  figure  is 
in  the  Egypto-Syrian  style.  On  each  side  of  him  is  a  smaller 
figure  in  a  long  garment,  more  in  the  Persian  style.  These 
two  are  beardless  and  have  their  heads  shaven  like  the 
Egyptian  priests.  Each  raises  a  hand  in  the  gesture  of  adora¬ 
tion.  The  picture  shows  a  mingling  of  Egyptian  and  Per¬ 
sian  elements.  The  workmanship  is  of  the  Phoenician  art 
of  the  end  of  the  sixth  century.  The  exergue  is  filled  with 
crossed  lines.  Furtwangler  suggests,  with  much  ingenuity 
and  some  reason,  that  this  stone  had  its  origin  in  the  conquest 
of  Egypt  by  Kambyses,  and  that  he  is  here  represented  as 
Pharaoh. 

2.  Rock-crystal  scarab,  in  Bibliothbque  Nationale,  Paris  (Coll. 

Luynes,  No.  268) . 

Demonic  figure  in  Egypto-Syrian  style  with  four  wings 
on  his  body  and  one  on  each  heel.  He  wears  an  apron  and 
the  crown  of  Upper  Egypt  and  carries  in  each  hand  a  feather, 


312 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


the  symbol  of  victory  in  Egyptian  art.  The  exergue  is  filled 
with  crossed  lines.  The  workmanship  is  akin  to  that  of 
Greek  art,  and  shows  the  precision  of  the  second  half  of  the 
sixth  century. 

3.  Green  jasper  scarab,  from  Sardinia,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  104). 

A  demon  kneeling  on  one  knee,  his  upper  half  a  lion,  the 
lower  a  man  with  a  lion’s  tail.  He  wears  the  Egyptian  apron. 
Cable  border. 

4.  Green  jasper  scarab,  from  Tamassos  in  Cyprus,  found  in  a 

grave  of  the  sixth  century;  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 
102). 

Besa  shown  in  profile  wearing  a  feather  crown  and  con¬ 
tending  with  a  lion  which  stands  before  him  on  its  hind 
legs.  Above  it  are  a  star  and  a  sun  resting  on  a  crescent. 
The  exergue  is  filled  with  cross-lines.  Line  border. 

5.  Green  jasper  scarab,  from  Tharros  in  Sardinia,  in  British  Mu¬ 

seum  (Catal.  No.  215). 

A  king  (or  god),  bearded  and  with  conical  cap,  his 
mantle  falling  over  one  leg,  the  other  bare,  striking  with  an 
Egyptian  axe  a  kneeling  naked  figure,  probably  a  demon, 
who  seems  to  be  trying  to  escape  and  raises  his  hands  in  sup¬ 
plication.  The  exergue  is  filled  with  cross-lines.  Line  border. 

6.  Green  jasper  scarab,  from  Tharros,  in  British  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  171). 

Two  negro  masks  joined  together,  back  to  back,  by  a 
third  mask  which  is  full-faced,  grinning  and  wears  a  crown 
of  feathers  (?)  (Besa?).  These,  however,  may  be  meant  for 
serpent-locks,  in  which  case  the  face  would  be  of  Medousa. 
Below  the  neck  are  the  fore  parts  of  two  lions,  a  sheep’s  head, 
and  a  sparrow  hawk,  all  joined  together.  Irregular  cable 
border. 

7.  Green  jasper  scarab,  from  Tharros,  in  British  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  182). 

A  warrior  marching  and  looking  behind,  as  if  at  a  pur¬ 
suing  enemy  against  whose  attack  he  holds  his  shield  on 
which  is  set  a  Seilenos  mask,  while  he  thrusts  backward  with 
his  spear.  He  wears  greaves  and  a  linen  corselet.  His 
thighs  are  clothed  in  some  fashion  indicated  by  transverse 
strokes.  Cable  border. 

8.  Green  jasper  scarab,  from  Tharros,  in  British  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  172). 


GIEECO-Pi  HEN IC IAN  GEMS 


313 


Nude,  winged  figure  running.  The  face  is  that  of  Besa 
and  he  wears  a  crown  of  three  feathers.  In  his  hands  he 
brandishes  two  uraei,  and  two  others  proceed  from  his  sides. 
The  exergue  is  filled  with  cross-lines.  Line  border.  Graeco- 
Phoenician  work  with  strong  Egyptian  influence. 

9.  Green  jasper  scarab,  from  Tharros,  in  British  Museum  (Catal. 
No.  196). 

A  bearded  god,  probably  Bel-Khamon,  seated  on  a  throne 
which  is  flanked  by  sphinxes.  Before  him  stands  a  blazing 
censer  ( ?)  and  above  is  the  winged  globe.  Exergue  filled 
with  cross-lines.  Cable  border.  Graeco-Phoenician  work, 
with  Egyptian  influence. 

10.  Black  and  white  banded  agate  scarab,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  100). 

Besa  with  feather  crown.  The  face  and  body  are  shown 
full  front,  the  legs  in  profile,  the  mantle  falling  over  one 
leg.  Wild  goats  and  uraei  spring  from  his  hands  which  are 
at  his  waist,  while  two  lions  hang  down,  held  by  the  legs. 
Exergue  filled  with  cross-lines.  Graeco-Phoenician  work  of 
the  sixth  century,  with  Egyptian  influence. 

11.  Green  jasper  scarab,  from  Tharros,  in  British  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  218). 

Seilenos  bearded,  squatting,  with  a  goblet  in  his  hand. 
The  head  and  hair  with  the  long  lock  behind  are  those  of  Besa, 
and  he  has  a  horse’s  tail,  like  that  of  the  Greek  Seilenos, 
though  much  longer.  Cable  border.  Work  of  the  sixth 
century. 

12.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  229). 

Besa,  bearded,  shown  in  profile,  wearing  the  feather 
crown,  his  thighs  draped,  and  with  a  uraeus  springing 
from  his  waist.  He  is  stabbing  a  griffin  which  stands 
erect  before  him.  Exergue  filled  with  cross-lines.  Cable 
border. 

13.  Green  jasper  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  235). 

Two  lions  attacking  a  bull  which  has  'transfixed  one 
of  them  with  one  of  his  horns.  Above  hangs  a  lotos  flower. 
Exergue  filled  with  cross-lines.  Cable  border. 

14.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  98,738). 

A  lion  resting  in  a  swamp  of  lotos  flowers  which  rise 
above  him.  Exergue  filled  with  cross-lines. 


314 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


Greek-Persian  Gems 

(These  stones  are  bored  through  the  longer  axis.) 

15.  Bluish  chalcedony,  right-angled  stone,  the  top  bevelled  in  five 

facets  and  the  picture  only  on  the  bottom,  in  Berlin  Museum 
(Catal.  No.  185). 

A  combat  with  lances  between  a  mounted  Persian  and 
an  adversary  on  foot  who  carries  a  shield.  The  work  is 
very  careless  and  shows  free  use  of  the  drill. 

16.  Bluish  chalcedony  scaraboid,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty, 

New  York. 

A  boar  running.  Work  of  about  350  B.  C. 

17.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  Sparta,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  188). 

A  Persian  lion-griffin  with  wings  bent  forward.  It  has 
a  goat’s  horn  and  eagle’s  hind  legs. 

18.  Red  and  white  agate  rectangular  stone  with  faceted  top 

and  engraved  on  all  six  faces,  from  the  neighborhood  of 
Bagdad. 

(a)  On  the  bottom,  which  is  considerably  damaged,  a 
Persian  horseman,  horse  and  man  shown  full  front  but  with 
defective  foreshortening,  spearing  a  boar  which  springs  at 
him.  The  man  is  clothed  entirely  in  a  close  fitting  garment. 

(b)  On  the  top,  a  hawk,  and  on  the  four  bevelled  edges 
a  running  bear,  a  lizard,  a  fox  sniffing  at  what  seems  to  be  a 
grasshopper,  and  a  bushy  tailed  dog  lying  down. 

Work  of  not  later  than  450  B.  C. 

19.  Chalcedony  scaraboid  engraved  on  both  sides,  in  Boston  Mu¬ 

seum  (No.  03,1013). 

(a)  On  the  convex  side,  a  draped  woman,  with  flowing 
head-dress,  seated  in  a  chair  with  a  bird  perched  on  her  hand. 
Before  her  stands  a  dwarf. 

(b)  On  the  flat  side,  another  seated  woman,  similarly 
dressed,  playing  a  trigSnon  or  triangular  lyre.  Before  her 
stands  a  dog  with  a  bushy  tail. 

Fourth  century  work. 

20.  Bluish  chalcedony  scaraboid,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New 

York  (King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  304). 

A  stag  sinking  on  one  knee,  as  if  wounded. 

21.  Rock-crystal  scaraboid,  from  Constantinople,  in  Berlin  Mu¬ 

seum  (Catal.  No.  184). 

A  mounted  hunter  with  a  lance  attacking  two  wild  goats. 


GEMS  OF  THE  BEST  PERIOD  OF  GREEK  ART  315 


22.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  Megalopolis,  in  Berlin  Museum 
(Catal.  No.  181). 

A  Persian  woman  in  a  trailing  robe  with  long  hanging 
sleeves.  Her  hair  is  dressed  in  a  long  braid  tied  at  the  end. 
She  carries  in  one  hand  an  alabastron  and,  in  the  other,  a 
drinking-cup  and  a  spoon.  Fourth  century  work. 


PLATE  VII 

Gems  of  the  Best  Period  of  Greek  Art 

(These  stones  are  bored  through  the  longer  axis  except  when  other¬ 
wise  stated.) 

1.  Bluish,  light-clouded  chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  Kertsch,  in 

Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

A  flying  crane.  Beneath,  in  two  lines,  is  the  inscrip¬ 
tion  AEEAMEPO^  EPOI E  XIO^  (Dexamenos  the  Chian  made) . 
Line  border.  This  is,  perhaps,  the  most  important,  as 
well  as  one  of  the  most  beautiful  gems  known. 

2.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  Cyprus,  in  Boston  Museum  (No. 

1075, 86). 

A  lion  killing  a  mule.  Cable  border.  Work  of  second 
quarter  of  the  fifth  century. 

3.  Carnelian  cone  (chipped),  the  base  oblong  and  cut  slightly  con¬ 

vex,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  550). 

A  child,  probably  the  young  Dionysos,  seated  on  the 
ground  and  reaching  out  for  a  bunch  of  grapes  that  hangs 
on  a  vine.  Work  of  second  half  of  the  fifth  century. 

4.  Carnelian,  probably  originally  a  scaraboid.  Owner  unknown. 

Described  from  former  descriptions  and  a  modern  glass  paste 
reproduction. 

Eros  as  a  child,  though  the  head  seems  older  and  he  is 
very  far  from  the  later  Cupid  type.  He  is  winged  and  rests 
on  his  knees  and  one  hand.  Behind  him  is  the  open  shell 
from  which,  according  to  one  tradition,  he  was  fabled  to 
have  been  born.  Beneath  is  inscribed,  <J>PY[~I A AO^  (Phrygil- 
los),  doubtless  the  name  of  the  artist,  who  has  been  identified 
with  a  Syracusan  coin-designer  of  the  second  half  of  the 
fifth  century.  Cable  border. 

5.  Chalcedony  with  brownish  spots,  apparently  cut  down  from  a 

scaraboid,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  557). 

A  bearded  centaur  running  with  the  skin  of  an  animal 


316 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


fastened  about  his  neck  and  floating  out  behind  him,  while 
an  arrow  (of  Herakles?)  pierces  his  back.  Below  his  tail  are 
the  letters  XI,  probably  the  beginning  of  the  owner’s  name. 
Line  border.  Art  of  the  school  of  Dexamenos. 

6.  Bluish  chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  Greece,  in  Boston  Mu¬ 

seum  (No.  10339.5). 

A  griffin  attacking  a  stag.  Underneath  is  a  conventional 
representation  of  rocks. 

7.  Brownish  chalcedony  scaraboid  (slightly  chipped),  in  collec¬ 

tion  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New  York. 

A  combined  monster  with  the  head  and  neck  of  a  horned 
dragon,  a  beard,  a  mane,  the  wings  of  a  grasshopper,  and  an 
insect’s  body. 

8.  Garnelian  scaraboid,  from  Tarsos,  in  British  Museum. 

A  youth,  in  a  pointed,  crested  helmet  and  a  cloak  flutter¬ 
ing  behind  him,  leaning  forward  with  one  foot  raised  to  fasten 
his  sandal. 

9.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  Kertsch,  in  Hermitage  Museum, 

St.  Petersburg. 

A  lion. 

10.  Carnelian  scaraboid,  from  Crete,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

303). 

A  prancing  horse. 

11.  Translucent  carnelian  scaraboid,  from  Kertsch,  in  Hermitage 

Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

A  seated  woman  (Aphrodite?)  in  a  long  tunic  and 
mantle  leaning  forward  to  kiss  a  nude,  winged  Eros  who  em¬ 
braces  her.  School  of  Dexamenos. 

12.  Bluish  chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  South  Russia,  in  Hermitage 

Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Artemis  draped  to  the  feet  in  a  long  tunic.  The  motive 
has  the  character  of  the  Pheidian  sculptures.  In  her  right 
hand  she  holds  a  sacrificial  dish,  in  her  left,  her  bow.  She 
wears  a  diadem  of  towers  as  does  the  Artemis  on  the  coins 
of  the  Tauric  Chersonesos. 

13.  Convex  chalcedony  ring-stone,  from  Aigion,  in  Berlin  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  177). 

On  the  convex  side,  unbored,  a  nude,  bearded  Herakles. 
His  lion’s  skin  is  thrown  over  his  left  arm,  in  which  hand  he, 
also,  carries  his  bow.  In  the  right  hand  is  his  club.  In  the 
left  upper  field  the  owl  of  Athena  perches  on  his  shoulder,  in¬ 
dicating  the  protection  of  the  goddess.  Though  a  ring-stone 


GEMS  OF  THE  BEST  PERIOD  OF  GREEK  ART  317 


this  gem  is  evidently  work  of  the  second  quarter  of  the 
fifth  century. 

14.  Rock-crystal  scaraboid,  in  Ashmolean  Museum,  Oxford. 

Pan,  bearded  and  horned,  seated  on  a  rock  and  with  a 
bird,  perhaps  a  raven,  perched  on  one  hand.  An  example  of 
the  crude  work  of  the  best  period. 

15.  Translucent  scaraboid  (stone  unknown),  from  Kertsch,  in 

Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Aphrodite  fully  draped  and  seated  on  a  rock  giving  suck 
to  Eros,  who  stands,  winged,  at  her  knee.  The  perspective  is 
admirably  handled. 

16.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  Cyprus,  in  Metropolitan  Museum, 

New  York  (Cesnola  Coll.,  No.  142). 

A  bearded  man  in  a  long  tunic  and  mantle  seizing  a 
maiden,  also  clothed  in  a  tunic  to  her  feet  and  wearing  a 
hood,  who  is  dropping  a  lighted  torch.  It  probably  repre¬ 
sents  Hades  seizing  Kore.  Line  border.  Work  of  second 
quarter  of  the  fifth  century. 

17.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  South  Russia,  in  Hermitage  Mu¬ 

seum,  St.  Petersburg. 

A  nude  woman  resting  on  her  toes  with  knees  sharply 
bent  and  removing  or  putting  on  her  mantle  as  if  before  or 
after  bathing.  She  wears  a  pearl  necklace. 

18.  Translucent  carnelian  scarab,  from  Kertsch,  in  Hermitage  Mu¬ 

seum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Head  of  a  youth  in  a  Phrygian  cap,  perhaps  Paris.  Curv¬ 
ing  around  on  part  of  the  cap  that  falls  over  the  neck  are 
the  letters  TEPAA  (Perga),  evidently  the  beginning  of  a 
name.  Cable  border. 

PLATE  VIII 

Gems  of  the  Best  Period  of  Greek  Art  (concluded) 

(These  stones  are  iored  through  the  longer  axis  except  when  other¬ 
wise  stated.) 

1.  Dark  brown  sard  scaraboid,  from  Tanagra,  in  Berlin  Museum 
(Catal.  No.  302). 

A  bull  sinking  on  one  knee.  Above  is  the  ending  of  an 
inscription,  ^AO^,  which  Furtwangler  considers  the  ending 
in  the  genitive  of  some  artist’s  name,  following  a  line  of 
argument  which,  as  1  have  set  forth  elsewhere,  is  to  me  un- 


318 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


convincing.  Ornate  border  of  joined  squares  with  central 
dots.  Work  of  the  middle  of  the  fifth  century. 

2.  Carnelian,  pierced  like  a  scaraboid,  with  convex  picture  sur¬ 

face  and  the  back  part  cut  off;  from  Asia  Minor  (?),  in  Ber¬ 
lin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  328). 

The  two  Dioskoroi  represented  as  boys,  both  with 
mantles,  kneeling  and  playing  with  knucklebones.  One 
wears  a  fillet  around  his  head.  The  other’s  hair  is  somewhat 
rumpled.  To  the  left  is  a  fish,  and,  above,  a  crux  ansata. 
Below  is  a  very  unusual  descriptive  inscription:  AIO^KOPOI. 
Work  of  the  middle  of  the  fifth  century. 

3.  Rock-crystal  scaraboid  (chipped),  in  Boston  Museum  (No. 

01,7545). 

A  bull  stung  by  a  gadfly  and  running  or  stumbling. 
Above  is  the  inscription,  OE  —  A,  the  break  intervening,  and 
down  the  side,  in  front,  E£E,  facing  the  wrong  way,  as  often 
happens.  Several  guesses  as  to  the  complete  inscription 
have  been  hazarded.  Cable  border. 

4.  Rectangular,  milky  chalcedony,  the  top  of  the  stone  cut  in  three 

facets  running  lengthwise;  from  Greece,  in  Berlin  Museum 
(Catal.  No.  333). 

On  the  base  is  a  locust  or  grasshopper. 

5.  Banded  agate  barrel-shaped  cylinder,  with  the  picture  side  cut 

flat,  from  Greece,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  331). 

A  woman  in  a  long  tunic.  Her  head  is  turned  back  and 
she  is  combing  out  her  long  hair.  Work  of  the  second  quar¬ 
ter  of  the  fifth  century. 

6.  Eye-agate  scaraboid  with  the  picture  surface  somewhat  convex. 

A  seiren  wearing  a  peculiar  head-dress  and  having  the 
body  and  tail  of  a  scorpion.  Very  crude  Ionic  work  of  the 
Asiatic  mainland.  The  head-dress  shows  strong  Oriental 
influence. 

7.  Mottled  green  plasma  scaraboid,  from  Cyprus,  in  Metropolitan 

Museum,  New  York  (Cesnola  Coll.,  No.  242). 

A  youth  in  a  crouching  attitude  wearing  a  hat  with  a 
brim  and  holding  in  his  hand  an  object  which  may  be  meant 
for  a  conch-shell.  Surface  of  stone  with  high  polish ;  interior 
of  intaglio,  dull.  The  feet  seem  to  have  been  worn  away,  pos¬ 
sibly  by  hard  repolishing  of  the  stone  in  ancient  times. 

8.  Mixed  red  and  yellowish  jasper  ring-stone  (somewhat  chipped), 

unbored,  from  the  neighborhood  of  Taormina,  Sicily. 

A  beardless  man,  in  a  long  robe  and  with  one  foot 


GEMS  OF  THE  BEST  PERIOD  OF  GREEK  ART  319 


raised,  pouring  water  (or  wine)  from  a  top-shaped  vessel.  It 
evidently  represents  the  closing  ceremony  of  the  Eleusinian 
Mysteries,  when  libations  of  water  were  poured  east  and  west, 
with  mystical  formulae,  from  two  top-shaped  vessels.  This 
gem  gives  rise,  as  I  have  suggested  in  my  introduction,  to  a 
most  interesting  speculation.  From  the  subject  it  is  highly 
probable  that  it  was  the  signet  of  an  Athenian,  the  Athenian 
expedition  against  Syracuse  wintered  in  414  B.  C.  at  Naxos, 
just  under  Taormina,  and  the  material  is  altogether  in  ac¬ 
cord  with  that  date  though  it  is  early  for  a  flat  ring-stone. 
The  engraving  is  crude  but,  as  we  have  set  forth  elsewhere, 
it  has  been  too  much  the  fashion  to  deny  all  poor  work  to 
good  periods  of  art.  Altogether  I  am  strongly  inclined  to 
consider  the  gem  the  signet  of  a  member  of  that  ill-fated 
Sicilian  expedition  whose  destruction  paved  the  way  for  the 
fall  of  Athens. 

9.  Banded  agate  scaraboid,  from  Ithome,  in  British  Museum 
(Catal.  No.  480). 

A  female  head  wearing  a  diadem  in  front.  Beneath  is 
the  inscription,  EO^  (Eos),  which  gives  us  another  ex¬ 
ample  of  a  descriptive  inscription,  more  understandable,  per¬ 
haps,  in  the  case  of  a  head  which  would,  otherwise,  be  pretty 
sure  to  fail  of  identification. 

10.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  431). 

Head  of  a  youth  wearing  a  pilos  or  pointed  cap  strung 
with  a  cord  at  top.  Cable  border.  Work  of  the  Pheidian 
school. 

11.  Carnelian  ring-stone,  unbored,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

347). 

A  naked  negro  slave  asleep  in  a  squatting  position.  The 
hair  is  done  entirely  with  drill-holes.  Drill-hole  border.  Ap¬ 
parently  work  of  the  earlier  part  of  the  epoch  but  showing  a 
fair  attempt  at  foreshortening. 

12.  Red  jasper  scaraboid  with  white  streaks,  from  Greece,  in  Bos¬ 

ton  Museum  (No.  98,716). 

Danae,  in  a  long  tunic,  leaning  against  a  couch  and 
holding  out  her  garment  in  both  hands  to  catch  the  descend¬ 
ing  shower  of  gold.  The  head  of  the  couch  is  decorated,  and 
two  pillows  lie  on  it.  Cable  border.  Work  of  the  middle  of 
the  fifth  century. 

13.  Yellowish  brown  chalcedony  scarab,  from  Syracuse,  in  British 

Museum  (Catal.  No.  361). 


320 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


Female  head  in  full  face  with  hair  bound  up  in  a  flowing 
knot  at  the  top.  She  wears  ear-rings  and  a  necklace  of 
pendants.  Cable  border.  Work  of  the  second  quarter  of  the 
fifth  century. 

14.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  291). 

A  horse  rolling  on  its  back.  Cable  border.  Work  of  the 
second  quarter  of  the  fifth  century. 

15.  Flat  rectangular  carnelian  with  convex  back,  from  Athens,  in 

Boston  Museum  (No.  95.85). 

Ithyphallic  bearded  Herm  of  Hermes  with  a  modius-like 
head-dress.  Beside  it  is  a  caduceus.  Work  of  the  latter 
half  of  the  fifth  century. 

16.  Carnelian  scarab,  from  Kertsch,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St. 

Petersburg. 

A  crouching,  nude  woman  holding  her  garment  before 
her  as  if  surprised.  She  squats  on  a  double  ground-line,  the 
lower  one  done  with  drill-holes.  Cable  border.  The  work 
seems  akin  to  that  of  the  school  of  Dexamenos. 

17.  Carnelian  cylinder,  cut  like  No.  5,  above  (somewhat  calcined)  ; 

in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  555). 

A  seated  youth,  with  the  lower  half  of  his  body  draped, 
playing  a  trigonon.  Intaglio  unpolished.  Work  of  the 
school  of  Dexamenos  but  rather  later. 

18.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  Larnaka,  in  Ashmolean  Museum, 

Oxford. 

A  naked  satyr  dancing  and  carrying  a  thyrsos  and  a 
branch.  Bather  careless  work. 

19.  Banded  agate  cylinder,  flattened  on  the  engraved  side,  from 

Greece,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  98.721). 

A  crane  standing  on  one  foot.  Beautiful  work  of  the 
school  of  Dexamenos. 

20.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  Syria,  in  Ashmolean  Museum,  Ox¬ 

ford. 

Aphrodite,  nude  to  the  hips,  standing  in  a  statuesque 
pose,  with  one  hand  resting  on  a  low  column.  On  the 
other  perches  a  dove.  Her  hair  is  done  with  a  few  drill¬ 
holes.  On  the  convex  side  of  this  scaraboid  another  design 
was  cut  in  late  imperial  times.  See  Plate  XXII,  9. 

21.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  Syria  (chipped  and  calcined). 

An  incompleted  work,  probably  intended  to  be  a  Pan. 
The  horns  seem  pretty  clear  but  the  head  and  beard  are 
only  suggested,  and  the  arms  and  other  parts  unfinished. 


GEMS  OF  THE  FINISHED  STYLES 


321 


One  arm  is  extended  and  the  other  raised  as  if  to  cast  a 
javelin  the  line  of  which  seems,  also,  to  be  faintly  traced. 
The  condition  of  both  the  stone  and  the  work  suggests  that 
the  latter  was  interrupted  by  some  catastrophe  involving 
fire  which  fell  either  upon  the  city  or  the  house  of  the 
artist.  The  condition  makes  the  attribution  of  the  period 
rather  uncertain  but  I  have  little  doubt  that  the  gem  belongs 
here. 

22.  Agate  (?)  scaraboid,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  478). 

A  naked  satyr  seizing  and  half  raising  from  the  ground 
a  mainad  who  wears  an  Ionic  tunic.  In  one  hand  she  car¬ 
ries  a  thyrsos;  the  other  arm  is  extended  as  if  to  keep  her 
balance.  Cable  border.  Work  of  about  450  B.  C. 

23.  Brownish  chalcedony  scaraboid,  from  Lakonia,  in  Berlin  Mu¬ 

seum  (Catal.  No.  313). 

Aphrodite,  with  mantle  about  her  hips  and  legs,  seated 
on  a  stool  and  balancing  a  rod  on  one  finger.  Work  of  the 
end  of  the  fifth  century  or  possibly  a  little  later. 


PLATE  IX 

Gems  of  tiie  Finished  Styles 

(The  scaraboids  on  this  plate  are  bored  through  the  longer  axis.) 

1.  Carnelian  ring-stone,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  349). 

Philoktetes,  bearded  and  nude,  seated,  mournful,  on  a 
rock  with  the  bow  and  quiver  of  Herakles  behind  him. 

2.  Grayish  white  agate  ring-stone  (chipped),  from  Peloponnesos, 

in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  346). 

Head  of  a  youth,  his  short  hair  bound  with  a  fillet. 

3.  Carnelian  ring-stone  (somewhat  chipped),  in  British  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  552). 

Aphrodite,  fully  draped  save  for  the  right  breast  which 
is  left  bare  and  wearing  a  diadem  and  necklace,  seated,  with 
a  nude,  unwinged  Eros  leaning  against  her. 

4.  Carnelian  ring-stone,  from  Athens,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  351). 

Eros  as  a  winged  youth  shooting  his  bow.  Inscription, 
0AYMPI05,  the  name  of  the  artist.  This  Olympios  is,  doubt¬ 
less,  identical  with  the  coin-designer  of  the  same  name  of  the 
Arkadian  coinage  of  370  B.  C. 


322 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


5.  Brownish  red  sard  ring-stone,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

354). 

Unbearded  Triton,  both  legs  ending  in  fishes’  tails,  hold¬ 
ing  a  trident  in  one  hand  and  a  rudder  in  the  other.  Be¬ 
neath  him  are  two  dolphins.  Cable  border.  Work  of  about 
Alexander’s  time. 

6.  Dull,  light  brownish  chalcedony  rectangular  gem  with  fac¬ 

eted  top,  bored  through  the  longer  axis,  from  the  thea¬ 
tre  of  Dionysos,  Athens,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 
334). 

On  the  under  side,  a  dancing  Bacchante  with  flowing 
drapery,  the  left  breast  bare,  and  a  sphendone  or  diadem  on 
her  head.  In  one  hand  she  carries  a  thyrsos,  in  the  other 
a  sword. 

7.  Mottled  jasper  scaraboid,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  01,7539). 

Odysseus,  bearded  and  nude  save  for  a  cloak  wrapped 
about  one  arm.  He  wears  a  pilos  on  his  head  and  holds  his 
sheathed  sword.  One  foot  rests  on  a  rock,  his  elbow  on 
the  knee,  the  hand  supporting  his  chin  as  if  in  thought. 
The  cast  shows  a  protuberance  on  the  right  stomach  muscles 
which  I  presume  is  a  chip  in  the  stone. 

8.  Carnelian  (broken  and  the  lower  right  side  incorrectly  restored 

in  gold)  ;  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  554). 

Mainad,  in  tunic  and  fawn’s  skin,  holding  a  wreath 
in  one  hand  and  a  thyrsos  decorated  with  fillets  in  the  other. 
In  the  unbroken  stone  she  was,  certainly,  not  kneeling  on  an 
altar. 

9.  Rock-crystal  scaraboid,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  317). 

Herakles,  beardless  and  nude  save  for  a  cloak  on  one 
arm,  leaning  on  his  club  which  rests  on  a  rock  and  holding 
out  his  bow.  Statuesque  motive. 

10.  Bluish  chalcedony  scaraboid,  in  Biblioth&que  Nationale,  Paris 

(Coll.  Chabouillet,  No.  1093). 

Astronomical  design  symbolizing  the  constellations  of  the 
Serpent  and  the  Greater  and  Lesser  Bears. 

11.  Chalcedony  scaraboid  sprinkled  with  yellow  jasper,  in  Berlin 

Museum  (Catal.  No.  310). 

A  bull  with  lowered  head. 

12.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  319). 

A  female  figure,  with  garment  about  her  legs  and  a  veil, 
seated  on  the  base  of  a  low  column.  Before  her  stands  a 
winged  Victory,  also  with  garment  about  her  legs,  crowning 


GEMS  OF  THE  FINISHED  STYLES 


323 


her  with  a  wreath.  The  identity  of  the  seated  figure  is  un¬ 
certain. 

13.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1161). 

Nike,  with  long  wings  and  garment  about  her  legs,  hang¬ 
ing  a  sword  on  a  trophy  at  the  base  of  which  rests  a  second 
shield.  A  double  pointed  dart  stands  beside  it  from  which 
depends  a  pennant  bearing  the  inscription,  ON  AT  A,  adapted 
to  its  curves.  This  is  held  by  Furtwiingler  and  others  to 
be  the  name  of  the  artist,  Onatas.  Both  gem  and  signature 
seem  to  me  worse  than  doubtful.  The  whole  design  and  the 
placing  of  the  letters  smack  strongly  of  the  eighteenth 
century  forgers  but  I  include  it  here  on  the  authority  of 
others  and  as  an  interesting  example  of  what,  in  my  opinion, 
an  ancient  gem  should  not  be. 

14.  Dark  red  jasper  scaraboid  sprinkled  with  chalcedony,  in  Berlin 

Museum  (Catal.  No.  320). 

An  amphora  with  a  pointed  lid. 

15.  Rock-crystal  scaraboid  (chipped),  from  Sparta,  in  Berlin  Mu¬ 

seum  (Catal.  No.  314). 

Aphrodite  with  mantle  over  one  arm  and  about  her  hips 
and  legs.  In  one  hand  she  holds  a  mirror  and  with  the  other 
she  is  arranging  her  hair.  The  motive  is  like  that  of  the 
Praxitelean  Venus  of  Arles.  It  may  possibly  date  from 
the  end  of  the  fifth  century. 

PLATE  X 

Gems  of  the  Finished  Styles  ( concluded ) 

(These  are  all  ring-stones  except  when  otherwise  stated.) 

1.  Nicolo,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  355). 

A  nude,  winged  youth  bearing  a  thunderbolt  and  with 
bristling  hair  (or  a  crown  of  rays).  He  has  one  hand  on 
the  shoulder  of  a  smaller,  nude  youth  beside  him  who  car¬ 
ries  what  seems  to  be  a  thyrsos  and,  possibly,  a  bunch  of 
grapes.  These  figures  cannot  be  identified,  though  Furtwang- 
ler  hazards  a  far  guess  that  it  may  be  Alkibiades  under  the 
protection  of  the  Eros  armed  with  a  thunderbolt,  the  device 
he  bore  on  his  shield.  Though  classed  in  this  epoch  by 
Furtwangler,  I  am  inclined  to  place  the  gem  much  later. 
The  material  would  bespeak  for  it  a  Graeco-Roman  origin. 

2.  Nicolo,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  341). 


324 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


A  horseman,  in  Scythian  tunic,  trousers,  and  cap,  gal¬ 
loping  over  an  antelope  that  has  doubled  on  him.  Cable 
border.  This,  also,  may  be  Graeco-Roman. 

3.  Black  jasper,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  356). 

Acheloos,  with  a  winged  Victory  floating  above.  A  sim¬ 
ilar  figure  is  found  on  the  coins  of  Neapolis  and  several  other 
cities,  and  the  gem  is  probably  work  of  the  South  Italian 
Greeks. 

4.  Carnelian  scarab,  bored  through,  from  Apulia,  in  British  Mu¬ 

seum  (Catal.  No.  423). 

A  man’s  and  woman’s  hands  clasped,  the  latter  with  a 
bracelet  on  the  wrist.  Inscription  XAIPE  KAI  (be  thou 
happy).  Cable  border.  A  good  wishes  gift. 

5.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  353). 

A  crane  attacking  a  serpent. 

6.  Carnelian  fragment,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  352). 

Ganymedes  being  borne  aloft  by  the  eagle  of  Zeus. 

7.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  bored  through,  in  Boston  Museum  (No. 

98.718). 

A  cow  browsing  on  the  leaves  of  a  tree.  The  work  may 
be  of  the  fifth  century. 

8.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  359). 

A  griffin  standing  over  a  fallen  stag  and  seizing  its 
throat  in  his  jaws.  The  griffin  has  pointed  ears  and  a  lion’s 
mane. 

9.  Chalcedony  (broken),  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  553). 

A  bearded  warrior,  in  short  tunic  and  corselet,  stooping 
on  one  knee  to  seize  a  stone.  A  panther’s  skin  covers  one 
shoulder  and  arm,  and  he  holds  two  javelins.  The  intaglio 
is  unpolished. 

10.  Grayish  chalcedony  with  light  yellowish  brown  tone,  in  Ber¬ 

lin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  350). 

An  actor,  with  a  goat’s  skin  about  his  loins,  taking  off  a 
bearded  satyr  mask.  Against  his  shoulder  leans  a  thyrsos 
with  fillets. 

11.  Carnelian  scaraboid,  bored  through,  from  Asia,  in  Berlin  Mu¬ 

seum  (Catal.  No.  1010). 

On  the  convex  side  is  pictured  a  seated  woman,  fully 
draped,  about  to  fasten  or  unfasten  her  sandal.  Work  of 
second  half  of  the  fourth  century. 

12.  Carnelian,  cut  down  from  a  scarab,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  300). 


GEMS  OF  THE  FINISHED  STYLES 


325 


Kadmos,  unbearded  and  nude  save  for  the  cloak  wrapped 
about  one  arm,  attacking  with  his  sword  the  dragon  which 
coils  about  a  rock  from  which  the  water  flows.  A  pitcher  lies 
on  the  ground  at  the  hero’s  feet.  Cable  border.  South 
Italian  Greek  work,  possibly  of  the  fifth  century. 

13.  Carnelian  (broken),  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  348). 

A  horseman,  with  a  cloak  floating  from  his  shoulders, 
thrusting  with  his  spear  at  some  creature  behind  the  rock 
over  which  his  horse  prances.  Cable  border.  South  Italian 
Greek  work,  perhaps  of  the  fifth  century,  as  the  stomach 
muscles  in  three  folds  seem  to  indicate. 

14.  Carnelian  scarab,  bored  through,  in  British  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  420). 

A  woman,  with  garment  about  her  shoulders,  seated  on 
a  rock  and  playing  with  a  dog. 

15.  Carnelian,  long  rectangular  stone,  bored  through  and  engraved 

on  four  sides  (broken),  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  337). 
(a)  and  (b)  Tripods. 

(c)  Apollo,  nude  save  for  a  cloak  hanging  on  his  back, 
with  hair  high  on  his  forehead  and  flowing  down  his  neck. 
In  one  hand  he  holds  a  laurel  bough,  in  the  other  a  bowl. 

(d)  A  youth,  nude  save  for  a  cloak,  holding  a  diskos  ( ?) 
in  both  hands.  Perhaps  Hyakinthos. 

16.  Convex  carnelian,  bored  through  but  found  set  solid  in  a  ring; 

in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  329). 

A  nude  boy,  with  an  amulet  hanging  from  his  breast, 
seated  on  the  ground.  Beneath  him  a  hound  pursues  a  stag 
and  seizes  it  by  the  leg.  Below  these  are  a  fawn  and  a  goose. 

17.  Agate  scarab  (broken),  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  315). 

Herakles,  bearded  and  nude,  his  club  in  his  hand,  one 
foot  resting  on  a  rock  from  which  water  flows  from  a  lion- 
head  spout.  Cable  border.  South  Italian  Greek  work. 

13.  Chalcedony  scaraboid  (chipped),  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No. 
476). 

A  sphinx  seated  on  her  haunches. 

19.  Pale  brownish  sard  (broken),  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No. 
556). 

A  woman,  fully  draped,  seated  on  a  chair  and  reading  a 
book.  Before  her  a  lyre  rests  on  a  pedestal  on  which  is  in¬ 
scribed  in  very  faint  letters,  GPQC  (Eros).  Probably  some 
poetess  of  love,  like  Sappho. 


\ 


326 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


PLATE  XI 

Etruscan  Scarabs 

(These  stones  are  all  bored  through  the  longer  axis  except  when 
otherwise  stated.  The  inscriptions  follow,  generally,  the  read¬ 
ing  in  the  impressions  but  where,  as  is  not  infrequently  the  case, 
the  letters  are  scattered  and  read  both  ways,  I  have  transcribed 
them  from  left  to  right.  It  is  only  material  that  the  student 
should  familiarise  his  eye  with  both  orders  of  the  letters,  since, 
while  Etruscan  reads  from  right  to  left,  their  gem-cutters 
worked,  sometimes  with  reference  to  the  impression,  sometimes 
with  reference  to  the  reading  on  the  stone  itself.) 

1.  Banded  agate,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Athena,  walking.  She  wears  a  long,  elaborate  tunic  and 
a  helmet,  and  bears  a  spear  and  shield.  Four  serpents  fill  the 
field,  two  on  each  side.  Gable  border.  Exergue  filled  with  a 
cross-strokes  design.  Archaic  work  of  the  end  of  the  sixth 
century,  belonging  to  our  first  group. 

2.  Carnelian,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  98,735). 

A  female  figure  with  long  tunic  which  she  is  holding  up 
with  one  hand.  In  the  other  hand  she  carries  a  palm-branch. 
Cable  border.  Archaic  work  of  the  end  of  the  sixth  century, 
belonging  to  our  first  group. 

3.  Carnelian,  from  Givita  Castellana,  in  collection  of  Mrs.  Henry 

Draper,  New  York. 

An  elaborately  draped  figure  wearing  a  helmet  and  car¬ 
rying  a  spear.  One  raised  hand  holds  up  an  end  of  the 
short  mantle  on  a  level  with  the  head.  Before  her  is  an 
object  somewhat  resembling  an  altar  set  on  a  rock.  Cable 
border.  Archaic  work  of  the  end  of  the  sixth  century,  be¬ 
longing  to  our  first  group. 

4.  Carnelian,  from  Corneto,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  272). 

Achilleus,  seated  on  a  stool,  mourning  for  the  loss  of 
Briseis.  A  mantle  represented  by  drill-holes  is  thrown 
around  his  hips.  Inscribed  (Achle).  Cable  border. 

Style  of  the  Greek  transition  period,  belonging  to  our  sec¬ 
ond  group. 

5.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  302). 

A  bearded,  nude  hero,  perhaps  Paris,  kneeling  on  one  knee 
and  stringing  his  bow.  Border  of  joined  drill-dots.  Exergue 
filled,  in  part,  by  the  cross-stroke  design  found  on  “  1,”  in  part 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


327 


by  parallel  perpendicular  lines.  Foreshortening  of  one  leg 
is  attempted.  Style  of  Greek  transition  period,  belonging  to 
our  second  group. 

6.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  276). 

Herakles,  nude  but  for  the  lion’s  skin  over  his  shoulders, 
attacking  with  raised  club  Kyknos,  who,  also  nude  and  with 
helmet  and  shield,  sinks  backward  under  the  blows.  In¬ 
scribed  34400  (Hercle)  and  KVKNE.  (Kukne).  Border  of 
joined  drill-dots.  Exergue  filled  with  a  very  perfectly  ex¬ 
ecuted  cross-stroke  design.  Style  of  Greek  transition  period, 
belonging  to  our  second  group. 

7.  Carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg.  For  the 

scarab  relief  we  here  find  the  figure  of  a  seiren. 

Ajax,  bearded  and  equipped  with  helmet,  greaves,  and 
an  elaborately  ornamented  corselet  with  scalloped  skirt,  rest¬ 
ing  on  one  knee  and  bearing  on  his  shoulder  the  naked  body 
of  the  dead  Achilleus.  Before  them  runs  a  small,  nude, 
winged  figure,  doubtless  intended  to  symbolize  the  spirit  of 
the  dead  hero.  Inscribed  ZAO  \A  (Aivas)  and 
(Achele).  Cable  border.  Exergue  filled  with  crossed  hori¬ 
zontal  and  perpendicular  lines.  Style  of  Greek  transition 
period,  belonging  to  our  second  group. 

8.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  472).  For  the  scarab 

relief  is  substituted  a  kneeling  female  figure  with  wings. 

An  unbearded  hero,  with  helmet,  greaves,  and  richly  or¬ 
namented  and  jewelled  corselet.  He  holds  a  shield  resting 
on  the  ground  before  him  and  is  giving  a  visored  helmet  to  a 
youth  who,  with  a  long  cloak  wrapped  about  him  and  a  lance 
in  his  hand,  reaches  out  to  receive  it.  Perhaps  it  is  Achilleus 
lending  his  arms  to  Patroklos.  Cable  border.  Exergue  filled 
with  the  cross-stroke  design.  Greek  transition  style,  belong¬ 
ing  to  our  second  group. 

9.  Sardonyx  of  three  layers,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  473). 

For  the  scarab  relief  is  substituted  a  figure  of  a  negro  slave, 
asleep  in  a  squatting  attitude,  much  like  the  motive  of  the  in¬ 
taglio  shown  Plate  VIII,  10. 

Kapaneus,  nude  and  beardless,  with  helmet,  shield,  and 
sword  that  drops  from  his  hand,  sinking  on  one  knee  while  the 
thunderbolt  strikes  the  back  of  his  neck.  Border  of  joined 
drill-dots.  Greek  transition  style,  belonging  to  our  second 
group. 

10.  Carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 


328 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


A  lion  crouching  on  its  forequarters  with  lashing  tail. 
Cable  border.  Belongs  to  our  second  group. 

11.  Carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Theseus,  seated  on  a  stool,  pondering  or  mourning,  with 
a  mantle  about  his  hips.  The  motive  is  absolutely  similar 
to  “  4  ”  above,  and  the  inscription,  3  ?3  ©  (These) ,  may  be  one 
of  the  arbitrary  flights  of  Etruscan  fancy  in  the  matter  of 
describing  the  subjects  on  their  gems.  Cable  border.  Greek 
transition  style,  belonging  to  our  second  group. 

12.  Carnelian,  cut  down  from  a  scarab,  but  showing  no  sign  of  the 

boring,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  195). 

Tydeus,  nude  and  unbearded,  leaning  over  and  scraping 
his  leg  with  a  strigil.  The  inscription,  3TVT  (Tute),  is  the 
only  indication  of  the  artist’s  intent  to  identify  the  figure. 
Cable  border.  Greek  transition  style,  belonging  to  our  sec¬ 
ond  group. 

13.  Carnelian,  with  a  most  ornate  and  highly  finished  scarab  relief. 

Cut  in  two  along  the  line  of  the  boring;  in  Berlin  Mu¬ 
seum  (Catal.  No.  194). 

Five  heroes,  all  unbearded,  are  shown  seated  on  stools 
or  standing  on  a  horizontal  ground-line.  The  inscription  tells 
the  subject:  a  council  of  leaders  at  the  siege  of  Thebes.  In 
the  middle  sits  Amphiarios,  a  mantle,  indicated  by  drill-holes, 
about  his  hips  and  thighs  and  a  lance  in  his  hand,  with  the 
inscription,  3G A II©/*!  A  (Amphtiare).  Opposite  sits  Poly- 
neikes,  with  cloak  falling  from  his  shoulders  about  his  legs, 
his  head  resting  on  his  hand.  Inscription,  3  31^  4  V© 
(Phulnice),  and,  behind  Amphiarios,  Parthenopaios,  wrapped 
in  his  mantle,  his  hands  on  his  knees,  with  the  inscription, 
TADOf\NP;rP\^/  (Parthanapaes).  The  heads  of  all  these 
are  bare.  Between  the  last  named  and  Amphiarios  stands 
Adrastos  with  helmet,  spear,  and  a  Mycenaean  shield.  Inscrip¬ 
tion,  ftTDE5©E  (Atresthe),  and,  in  the  background  over 
Polyneikes,  Tydeus,  in  helmet  and  corselet  and  holding  a 
spear,  with  the  inscription,  3TVT  (Tute).  Border  of  joined 
drill  dots.  A  very  fine  work  of  our  second  group  and  unique 
in  the  number  of  figures  represented. 

14.  Carnelian,  from  Corneto,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  278). 

Perseus,  with  a  winged  petasos  and  a  short  cloak  fall¬ 
ing  back  from  his  shoulders,  cutting  off  the  head  of  Medousa, 
who,  fully  draped  in  Ionic  archaic  style,  sinks  on  her  knees 
before  him.  The  head  has  nothing  of  the  Medousa  type 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


329 


about  it  but  she  holds  a  serpent  in  one  hand.  Both  figures 
rest  on  a  double  ground-line  with  a  sort  of  leaf  pattern 
between.  Border  of  joined  drill-dots.  The  work  probably 
belongs  to  our  second  group,  though  the  picturesque  subject 
points  to  a  rather  later  date,  in  which  case  it  should  be  classed 
as  an  imitation  of  an  earlier  style. 

15.  Cross-banded  Sardonyx,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  281). 

Achilleus,  beardless,  in  full  panoply,  with  corselet  and 
helmet  highly  ornamented  and  a  short  mantle  draped  over 
one  arm,  holding  up  Penthesileia,  who,  wounded,  sinks  on  her 
knees  with  drooping  head.  She  wears  a  helmet,  a  linen  (?) 
corselet  with  a  short  skirt  of  lighter  texture,  and  high  shoes. 
A  round  shield  is  on  her  arm,  and  her  double-headed  axe  has 
dropped  from  her  hand.  Running  over  one  shoulder  and 
obliquely  across  her  breast  is  what  may  be  meant  for  a  broad 
sword-belt.  Achilleus’  spear  stands  upright  by  his  side. 
Cable  border.  Exergue  filled  with  the  cross-line  design. 
Fine  archaic  work  belonging,  stylistically,  to  our  second 
group  but  picturesque,  showing  quite  successful  foreshorten¬ 
ing,  and,  perhaps,  of  as  late  manufacture  as  the  latter  part 
of  the  fifth  century. 

16.  Cross-banded  sardonyx,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  95,77). 

Two  nude  warriors  with  helmets  and  shields,  one  bearded, 
the  other  beardless,  supporting  a  third  who  is  kneeling, 
wounded,  on  the  ground.  He,  also,  is  bearded.  Cable  bor¬ 
der.  The  work  is  archaic  in  style  but,  like  “  15,”  is,  perhaps, 
of  later  date  than  450  B.  C. 

17.  Camelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  327). 

A  beardless  man,  wrapped  in  a  long  cloak  and  seated  on 
a  stool,  from  whom  a  young  hero,  also  beardless  and  armed 
with  a  helmet,  shield,  and  spear,  is  parting,  turning  his  head 
as  he  goes  as  if  to  bid  farewell.  Both  rest  on  a  ground-line. 
Inscription,  k£!OI>  (Laor).  The  subject  is  uncertain.  It 
may  be  Patroklos  parting  from  Achilleus.  Cable  border. 
The  work  is  in  the  severe  Greek  style  strongly  Etruscanized 
and,  probably,  belongs  along  the  middle  of  the  fifth  century. 

18.  Chalcedony,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  335). 

A  nude,  bearded  man,  perhaps  an  athlete,  leaning  on  a 
staff  or  spear  and  with  a  round  vessel  (for  oil?)  hanging 
on  his  arm.  He  also  holds  what  may  be  meant  for  a  strigil. 
Cable  border.  The  work  lacks  polish  and,  also,  the  orna¬ 
mented  line  about  the  base  of  the  beetle,  as  do  the  Greek 


330 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


scarabs,  but  the  style  is  strongly  that  of  the  Etruscanized 
archaic  Greek.  Probably  work  of  along  the  middle  of  the 
fifth  century. 

19.  Garnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  255). 

Nude,  beardless  youth,  bending  forward  with  a  hare  on 
his  arm  which  he  seems  to  have  picked  up  from  beside  a  bush 
which  stands  before  him.  In  the  other  hand  he  holds  a 
pedum.  Probably  a  rural  genre  scene,  rare  on  Etruscan 
scarabs.  Work  of  the  middle  of  the  fifth  century  and  kin¬ 
dred  to  our  second  group. 

20.  Banded  agate,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  269). 

Kapaneus,  nude  but  for  a  short  mantle  and  with  a  shield 
on  his  arm,  sinking  down  on  one  knee  as  the  thunderbolt 
strikes  his  head.  Shows  attempted  foreshortening.  Cable 
border.  Akin  to  our  second  group  but  dating,  probably, 
from  not  earlier  than  450  B.  C. 

21.  Banded  agate,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  298). 

Herakles,  unbearded,  with  his  lion’s  skin  about  his  shoul¬ 
ders  and  one  hand  resting  on  his  club,  seated  upon  his  own 
self-erected  funeral  pyre.  The  hair  is  done  with  drill-holes. 
Cable  border.  Akin  to  second  group  but  much  more  free  and 
dating,  probably,  from  not  earlier  than  450  B.  C. 

22.  Agate,  from  Chiusi,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  354). 

A  warrior,  helmetless  and  with  streaming  hair,  but  with 
corselet,  shield,  and  sword,  rushing  over  the  naked  body  of  a 
fallen  foe  and  turning  his  head  to  look  backward.  Cable 
border.  It  is  very  difficult  to  date  this  gem  at  all  accurately. 
It  might  fall  anywhere  between  450  and  350  B.  C. 

23.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  353). 

A  woman,  in  a  long  tunic  and  with  a  mantle  about  her 
hips,  seated  on  a  stool  with  elbow  on  knee  and  head  resting 
on  her  hand.  She  seems  to  have  butterfly’s  wings  on  her 
shoulders,  and  her  head  is  shown  in  full  face.  Before  her, 
in  the  field,  is  a  bow.  Though  much  like  some  Penelope 
types,  it  is  probably  a  Psyche — surely  so  if  the  wings  be  meant 
for  butterfly’s.  In  that  case  the  bow  is  that  of  Eros.  The 
date  of  this  gem  is  also  difficult  to  fix  but  it  is  probably  of 
along  450  B.  C. 

24.  Garnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

A  winged  female  figure,  draped  like  No.  23,  seated 
on  a  stool  and  holding  in  her  right  hand  a  small  winged 
demon  who  carries  an  indistinguishable  object.  At  her  feet 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


331 


is  a  caduceus.  The  subject  cannot  be  surely  identified  but 
the  presence  of  the  caduceus  suggests  that  the  small  figure 
may  be  a  soul,  perhaps  that  of  Memnon  in  the  hand  of  his 
mother,  Eos.  Cable  border.  The  work  looks  like  a  fourth 
century  attempt  to  imitate  the  classical  style. 


PLATE  XII 

Etruscan  Scarabs  ( continued ) 

(These  stones  are  bored  through  the  longer  axis  except  when  other¬ 
wise  stated.) 

1.  Carnelian,  cut  down  from  a  scarab,  the  boring  showing  on  the 

back,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  203). 

Hermes,  unbearded,  nude,  and  bending  over,  his  petasos 
hanging  at  the  back  of  his  neck.  He  holds,  in  one  hand,  his 
caduceus  and,  in  the  other,  a  small,  nude  figure  that  has 
what  looks  like  a  small  bough  in  one  hand  and  raises  the 
other  as  if  in  adoration.  Evidently  it  symbolizes  a  soul 
which  Hermes  carries,  as  “  Psychopompos.”  Cable  border. 
The  body,  head,  and  hair  show  the  free  influence  breaking 
through  the  archaic  forms. 

2.  Sardonyx,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  320). 

Hermes  Psychopompos,  unbearded,  nude,  and  standing 
erect,  his  petasos  hanging  at  his  back  and  his  caduceus  in  one 
hand,  while,  on  the  other  arm,  he  carries  a  small,  nude 
eidolon  figure  of  a  soul.  At  his  feet  is  a  conventional  repre¬ 
sentation  of  water — the  stream  of  Acheron.  Cable  border. 
Work  like  No.  1,  of  our  third  group. 

3.  Carnelian,  from  Yulci,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  204). 

Tydeus,  nude  and  bearded,  either  running  or  falling 
wounded — the  artist’s  intention  is  not  very  clear.  On  his 
arm  he  bears  his  shield,  in  the  other  hand  his  sword,  while 
his  helmet  has  fallen  off  and  lies  at  his  feet.  Inscription, 
3TVr  (Tute).  Cable  border.  Third  group. 

4.  Banded  agate,  in  collection  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New  York. 

This  gem  is  a  veritable  puzzle  from  every  standpoint. 
Herakles  stands  nude,  his  club  beside  him  and  his  lion’s 
skin  hanging  over  it  while,  with  the  other  hand,  he  seems 
to  hold  an  upright  nude  figure  whose  buttocks  would  suggest 
a  female  and  which  lacks  head,  shoulders,  and  arms.  Above 


332 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


it  are  six  small  dots,  but  they  are  not  so  placed  as  to  be 
possible  indications  of  an  incompleted  figure  nor  does  the 
sharp  line  of  demarcation  where  the  body  ends  leave  such  a 
supposition  reasonable.  I  know  of  no  Herakles  myth  that 
will  explain  this  subject.  Cable  border.  In  the  matter  of 
classification  and  period  this  scarab  is  also  confusing.  The 
full  softness  of  the  figures  and  the  head  and  face  of  the 
Herakles  would  carry  it  into  the  fourth  century,  but  the 
treatment  of  his  legs,  one  in  profile  and  one  full  front,  and 
the  broad,  square  shoulders  are  archaic  as  is,  also,  the  ab¬ 
solute  lack  of  polish  in  the  intaglio.  Altogether,  I  have  put 
it  here  in  class  three  by  way  of  compromise  but  shall  quarrel 
with  no  one  who  disputes  me.  I  may  add  that  the  scarab  is 
unquestionably  genuine,  since  the  opposite  hypothesis  might 
occur  to  some  who  have  not  studied  the  stone  itself. 

5.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  314). 

Hermes  and  Herakles  talking  together.  The  former  has 
a  cloak  thrown  over  his  shoulders,  his  caduceus  in  one  hand 
and  his  petasos  hanging  from  the  other.  He  wears  his  winged 
sandals.  Herakles  has  his  lion’s  skin,  bow,  and  quiver,  while 
his  club  is  at  his  feet.  Beautiful  border  of  s  curves  with 
dots  between.  Exergue  filled  with  the  conventional  cross-line 
design.  Work  of  our  third  group. 

6.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  324). 

A  nude  demon,  with  large  wings,  holding  a  garment  of 
some  sort  behind  him  with  both  hands.  Cable  border.  Third 
group. 

7.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  359). 

A  female  head  with  hair  elaborately  dressed.  Cable 
border.  A  rare  subject  in  Etruscan  art.  Class  three,  for 
lack  of  better  attribution. 

8.  Banded  agate,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  313). 

Hermes,  bearded  and  nude,  his  petasos  hanging  at  the 
back  of  his  neck  and  his  caduceus  in  his  hand.  Cable  border. 
The  legs  only  show  archaic  influence,  and  the  whole  work 
is  finely  detailed.  Third  group. 

9.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  201). 

Perseus,  nude  and  beardless,  carrying  his  curved  sword 
or  harpe  in  one  hand  and  the  head  of  Medousa  in  the  other. 
Blood  drops  from  both.  Over  one  arm  is  slung  a  sort  of 
wallet  and  he  wears  the  winged  sandals  of  Hermes.  The 
head  of  Medousa  does  not  show  conventional  characteristics. 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


333 


Inscription,  Q)£DfE  (Pherse).  Cable  border.  Coarse  work 
of  group  three. 

10.  Camelian,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  98.717). 

Hermes,  unbearded,  a  petasos  on  his  head  and  his  cloak 
over  his  shoulders,  kneeling  with  his  caduceus  in  one  hand 
and  a  necklace  in  the  other.  Cable  border.  Third  group. 

11.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  202). 

Kastor,  nude  and  kneeling,  supporting  himself  with  one 
hand  while,  with  the  other,  he  holds  the  back  of  his  neck, 
as  if  wounded.  It  evidently  pictures  the  death  of  Kastor. 
Inscription,  OVT 5 A  3  (Castur).  Cable  border.  The  archaic 
influence  shows  little  or  none.  Work  of  about  450  B.  C.  or 
somewhat  later.  Fourth  group. 

12.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  367). 

Youthful,  unbearded  Herakles  seated  on  a  rock  in  an 
attitude  of  meditation,  his  club  resting  on  another  rock  be¬ 
fore  him  from  which  a  fountain  springs.  Cable  border.  Fine 
Etruscan  work  of  the  fourth  group.  It  shows  no  stiffness 
and  dates  along  the  end  of  the  fifth  century. 

13.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  368). 

Seilenos,  nude,  seated  on  two  amphoras  which  are 
equipped  with  a  mast  and  sail.  Beneath  is  water.  Cable 
border.  Work  of  the  latter  half  of  fifth  century.  Fourth 
group. 

14.  Black  and  white  banded  agate,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

297). 

Paris,  nude  but  for  a  cloak  which  falls  from  his  shoulders, 
bending  to  draw  an  arrow  from  his  quiver  while  he  holds  his 
bow  in  his  hand.  Inscription,  ?!<3/<n  (Paris).  Cable  bor¬ 
der.  Fine,  free  work  of  early  second  half  of  fifth  century. 
Fourth  group. 

15.  Carnelian,  from  Chiusi,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  312). 

Ajax,  nude  and  beardless,  throwing  himself  on  his  sword 
which  is  set  against  a  rock.  Blood  drops  from  the  wound. 
Border  of  drill-dots.  Fourth  group. 

16.  Brownish  chalcedony,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  334). 

Ixion,  nude  and  bearded,  standing  bound  to  his  wheel. 
Inscription,  I'kClV/V  (Ichsiun).  It  may  be  noted  that  the 
Greek  sigma  is  used  here.  Cable  border.  Fourth  group,  but 
showing  severe  treatment  of  the  legs  and  considerable  stiff¬ 
ness. 

17.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  308). 


334 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


Tantalos,  bearded  and  with  a  cloak  over  his  shoulders 
and  following  the  line  of  his  back,  bending  forward  and  try¬ 
ing  to  reach  water  flowing  over  a  rock.  Cable  border.  Free 
work  of  second  half  of  the  fifth  century.  Fourth  group. 

18.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  498). 

Hyakinthos,  nude  and  beardless,  bending  over  a  diskos 
which  lies  on  the  ground,  while  the  blood  drops  from  his 
wounded  head.  Inscription,  3)VA  (Luce),  perhaps  for 
Lukeios,  an  epithet  of  Apollo  as  god  of  the  palaistra,  at  whose 
hands  Hyakinthos  received  his  death-wound.  Cable  border. 
Second  half  of  the  fifth  century.  Fourth  group. 

19.  Chalcedony  scarab  with  the  back  cut  away,  from  Chiusi,  in 

British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  433). 

Hermes  Psychopompos  with  winged  hat  and  sandals,  and 
cloak  following  the  line  of  his  back.  He  holds  his  caduceus 
and  leans  over,  beckoning  to  a  bearded  head  which  emerges 
from  a  jar.  A  type  picture  of  raising  a  soul  from  the  under¬ 
world.  Cable  border.  Free  work  of  second  half  of  fifth 
century.  Fourth  group. 

20.  Carnelian,  from  Toscaneila,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  98.730). 

Aktaion,  with  a  short  beard,  his  mantle  about  his  hips 
and  thrown  over  one  arm,  rising  from  a  chair  of  Attic 
shape  and  playing  with  a  dog  that  he  has  on  leash.  Below 
him  is  a  rock  and,  above,  water  issuing  from  a  lion-head 
fountain-spout.  Behind  the  stream  is  a  star-like  object  which 
Furtwangler  thinks  is  a  pomegranate.  Inscription,  ATAIVT 
(Ataiun).  Second  half  of  fifth  century.  Fourth  group. 

21.  Carnelian,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  98,773). 

An  unbearded,  nude  man,  probably  one  of  tho  giants, 
with  a  shield  on  his  left  arm  over  which,  also,  a  cloak  is 
draped,  rushing  upward  over  rocky  ground  and  about  to  hurl 
a  huge  stone.  His  spear  has  fallen  from  his  hands.  Inscrip¬ 
tion,  M  £  A  5  (Meas).  Cable  border.  Free  work  of  about 
400  B.  C. 

22.  Carnelian  cut  down  from  a  scarab,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  205). 

A  nude,  beardless  youth,  doubtless  Kadmos,  with  sword 
and  shield,  examining  the  ground  before  him  where  water  is 
running  from  a  rock.  A  water-jar  stands  between  his  feet. 
Cable  border.  A  fourth  century  work  with  an  affectation  of 
earlier  hair  treatment  and  sharpness. 

23.  Carnelian,  from  Chiusi*  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  316). 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


335 


Theseus  (or  Herakles),  his  cloak  about  his  shoulders  and 
his  sheathed  sword  in  his  left  hand  while  he  swings  his  club. 
Near  him  runs  a  wild  boar  (if  Herakles,  the  Erymanthian 
boar).  Cable  border.  Free  fourth  century  work  with  no 
trace  of  archaism. 

24.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  374). 

A  nude  figure  standing  with  his  arms  around  another 
who,  with  a  garment  about  the  hips,  seems  to  be  seated  on  a 
couch.  Cable  border.  Ordinary  work  of  the  fourth  cen¬ 
tury  B.  C. 

25.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  438). 

Eros,  as  a  winged  youth,  kneeling  with  his  hands  bound 
behind  his  back.  Cable  border.  Good,  free  work  of  the 
fourth  century. 


PLATE  XIII 

Etruscan  Scarabs  ( concluded ) 

(These  stones  are  bored  through  the  longer  axis  except  when  other¬ 
wise  stated.) 

1.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  264). 

Two  stags,  the  bodies  joined  together  and  having  one 
head.  Line  border.  Done  entirely  with  the  round  drill. 

2.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  217). 

Herakles,  nude  and  running  with  bent  knee  action.  He 
carries  his  club  and,  also,  two  amphoras  bound  together  with 
ropes.  Cable  border.  Done  with  round  drill. 

3.  Carnelian,  from  Perugia,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  214). 

Horseman  on  a  galloping  horse,  nude  and  carrying  shield. 
He  turns  backward  as  if  guarding  against  the  blow  of  a 
pursuer.  Cable  border.  Done  with  round  drill. 

4.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  365). 

A  chariot  race  with  six  cars  arranged  around  the  out¬ 
side  of  the  design.  In  a  central  cartouch  three  judges  with 
staffs  are  seated  on  stools.  Cable  border.  Done  with  round 
drill. 

5.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  381). 

Herakles,  nude,  killing  the  Hydra  with  his  club.  Beneath 
him  is  a  rock.  Cable  border.  Done  with  round  drill. 

6.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  237). 

A  Triton-like  sea-demon.  Beneath  him  is  a  fish.  Line 
border.  Done  with  round  drill. 


336 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


7.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  266). 

The  foreparts  of  two  dogs  ( ?)  arranged  reversely  and 
joined  together  by  one  body.  Line  border.  Done  with  round 
drill. 

8.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  227). 

Seilenos  pouring  water  or  wine  from  an  amphora.  No 
border.  Done  with  round  drill. 

9.  Light  greenish  plasma  searaboid,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

400). 

A  nude  man,  perhaps  Herakles,  bending  over  and  holding 
an  animal.  If  Herakles,  the  object  behind  him  is  meant  for  a 
club.  Above  are  two  drill-holes,  as  if  to  fill  the  space. 
Cable  border.  The  style  is  distinctly  of  the  Etruscan  drill- 
work  type  but  the  unusual  material  and  shape  may  point  to  a 
more  southern  provenance,  perhaps  Samnium. 

10.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  374). 

A  haruspex,  in  a  long  mantle  and  cap,  walking  with  a 
staff  and  holding  in  his  hand  what  seems  to  be  the  entrails 
of  an  animal.  Inscription,  ?\TA14  (Natis).  Line  border. 
Done  with  round  drill,  the  clothes  finished  with  a  few  lines. 

11.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  222). 

A  nude  winged  demon  bending  over  to  pick  up  or  put 
down  an  urn.  Joined  to  the  nape  of  his  neck  is  a  curious 
ball-like  object.  Cable  border.  Done  with  round  drill,  the 
wings  finished  with  the  wheel. 

12.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  231). 

Herakles,  unbearded  and  nude,  his  club  in  his  hand, 
seated,  pondering,  on  an  amphora  which  rests  on  a  raft 
supported  by  three  amphoras.  Before  him  is  a  bush.  Cable 
border.  Blocked  in  with  round  drill  but  the  head  and  hair 
finished  with  the  wheel,  and  the  body  muscles  well  worked 
out. 

13.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  328). 

Herakles,  nude.  The  bow  and  club  have  fallen  from  his 
hands  and  he  is  being  lifted  by  two  female  ( ?)  figures  in 
long  tunics  and  mantles.  Probably  a  representation  of  the 
hero’s  journey  to  Heaven.  Cable  border.  Done  with  round 
drill,  the  clothes  finished  with  the  wheel. 

14.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  330). 

A  nude  winged  demon  flying  and  holding  two  indefinite 
objects  in  his  hands.  In  the  British  Museum  catalogue  it  is 
called  Daidalos  and  the  objects,  a  saw  and  an  adze(?). 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


337 


Furtwiingler  calls  the  adze  a  pedum  and  the  saw  a  snare  ( ?). 
Cable  border.  Done  with  round  drill,  the  head  and  wings 
finished  with  the  wheel. 

15.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  223). 

A  winged  female  (  ?)  demon  in  a  long  tunic,  probably  Eos, 
if  male,  Thanatos,  holding  an  urn  from  which  water  seems  to 
be  flowing.  Behind  her  is  a  serpent  and,  behind  her  head, 
an  undistinguishable  object.  Cable  border.  Done  with 
round  drill,  the  tunic  and  wings  finished  with  the  wheel. 

16.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  377). 

A  harpyesque  or  seiren-like  demon,  wTith  a  bird’s  body 
and  feet  joined  to  which  are  a  woman’s  body  and  head.  She 
holds  a  sword  in  her  hand,  and  her  hair  is  drawn  up  in  a  knot 
at  the  top  of  the  head.  Done  with  round  drill  but  finished 
quite  carefully  with  sharp  wheel  strokes. 

17.  Carnelian  scarab,  from  Cervetri,  in  collection  of  Mrs.  Henry 

Draper,  New  York. 

A  seiren  with  spread  wings.  Cable  border.  Done  with 
round  drill,  the  tail  and  wing-feathers  with  sharp  wheel 
strokes. 

18.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  370). 

A  nude  youth  seated  on  a  rock  and  holding  an  amphora 
on  his  knees.  Behind  him  is  a  serpent.  According  to  Ger¬ 
hard,  Polyphemos  with  the  pitcher  of  wine  given  him  by  Odys¬ 
seus;  a  far-fetched  attribution.  Cable  border.  Done  with 
round  drill,  the  hair  finished  with  the  wheel. 

19.  Carnelian,  cut  down  from  scarab,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  371). 

Hermes,  beardless,  wearing  a  petasos  and  with  a  cloak 
hanging  from  his  shoulders,  holding  a  human-headed  swan, 
doubtless  meant  to  symbolize  a  soul,  by  the  head.  There  has 
been  a  cable  border  which  is  also  cut  away,  leaving  only  a  few 
traces.  Done  with  round  drill  and  finished  with  a  few 
strokes  of  the  wheel. 

20.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  274). 

Achilleus,  nude,  his  shield  on  his  arm,  sinking  back, 
wounded,  with  the  arrow  of  Paris  in  his  foot.  His  hair  is 
done  in  a  roll  with  a  long,  feather-like  knot  flowing  out  be¬ 
hind.  Cable  border.  Good  work  of  the  fourth  century, 
blocked  in  with  the  drill  but  finely  finished  with  a  sharp  cut¬ 
ting  instrument.  An  evident  imitation  of  the  earlier  styles. 

21.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  277). 


338 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


A  bearded,  nude  hero  wearing  a  helmet  and  carrying 
a  bow  and  club.  He  is  kneeling  on  one  knee  as  a  serpent 
bites  his  foot.  Over  one  shoulder  is  a  star.  It  is,  undoubt¬ 
edly,  Philoktetes  bearing  the  arms  of  Herakles,  whose 
apotheosis  may  be  symbolized  by  the  star.  Cable  border. 
Fine  work  of  the  fourth  century,  blocked  in  with  the  drill 
and  finished  with  sharp  wheel  strokes.  Also  an  imitation  of 
the  earlier  styles. 

22.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  208). 

A  demon  with  a  man’s  body  and  a  bull’s  head,  perhaps 
the  Minotaur,  carrying  a  bough  (?)  in  one  hand  and  a  round 
vessel  with  a  thong  handle  in  the  other.  Cable  border. 
Fourth  century  work,  done,  for  the  most  part,  with  the  drill 
but  the  details  are  well  worked  out  and  the  gem  is  evidently 
an  affectation  of  the  earlier  styles. 

23.  Carnelian  cut  down  from  a  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  444). 

The  Campanian  man-headed  bull  (Acheloos).  In  the  field 
are  a  plant  and  a  star.  In  the  exergue  is  a  serpent.  The 
cast  seems  to  show  traces  of  a  cable  border  that  has  been 
cut  away.  Fourth  century  drill-work  finished  with  the  wheel. 
The  inscription,  TEAAZ,  in  Greek  letters,  is  a  modern 
forgery. 

24.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  275). 

Achilleus  (?),  nude  and  bearing  a  shield  while  he  bends, 
with  one  foot  raised  on  a  rock,  to  pick  up  a  helmet  and  spear. 
Cable  border.  Fourth  century  work  blocked  in  with  drill  and 
finished  with  the  wheel  in  imitation  of  older  styles.  The 
four  Greek  letters  in  the  field  are  a  meaningless  modem 
forgery. 


HELLENISTIC  GEMS 


339 


PLATE  XIV 

Hbllenistic  Gems 

(These  are  ring-stones  except  when  otherwise  stated.) 

1.  Carnelian  of  a  beautiful  deep  red  tint,  in  Hermitage  Museum, 

St.  Petersburg. 

Full-length,  nude  likeness  of  Alexander  the  Great  with 
the  attributes  of  Zeus.  In  one  hand  he  holds  the  thunderbolt 
and  in  the  other  his  sheathed  sword  with  the  Aigis  thrown 
over  it.  His  shield  rests  on  the  ground,  and  before  him 
stands  an  eagle.  The  head  is  of  the  Alexander  type,  and 
there  was,  at  Ephesos,  a  full-length  painting  of  Alexander 
as  Zeus,  done  by  Apelles,  to  which  this  gem  evidently  stands 
in  close  relationship.  The  inscription,  N  6 1  COY,  seems  to 
be  later  work,  probably  of  imperial  times,  and,  if  so,  is  some 
more  recent  owner’s  name  in  the  genitive.  The  gem  is  large 
for  a  ring-stone  but  large  rings  were  sometimes  worn  and  the 
inscription  seems  to  indicate  that  it  was  used,  in  later  times, 
at  least,  as  a  signet. 

2.  Convex  carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  661). 

Athena  wearing  a  long  tunic  and  a  helmet.  In  one 
hand  she  holds  a  thunderbolt,  in  the  other  her  spear.  An 
ornamented  scarf  is  thrown  over  her  left  arm  and  seems 
to  be  connected  with  some  object  behind  her.  The  figure 
has  been  described  as  leaning  against  a  pillar  which  I  do  not 
find  in  evidence.  Statuesque  motive  sketchily  carried  out. 

3.  Convex,  dark  brown,  shaded  agate  (somewhat  broken),  in 

Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York  (King  Coll.,  Catal.  No. 
207). 

A  nude  female  figure,  shown  in  full  front,  leaning  on  a 
low  column  with  a  scarf  over  one  arm  and  floating  across 
her  thigh.  In  the  other  hand  she  holds  a  distaff.  She  also 
wears  a  necklace,  bracelets,  and  ear-rings.  It  would  seem  to 
be  intended  for  that  rare  subject,  one  of  the  Fates,  probably 
Klotho. 

4.  Carnelian  (somewhat  broken),  from  Cyprus,  in  Berlin  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  1042). 

Artemis  in  a  long  tunic  girt  in  at  the  waist.  In  one 
hand  she  holds  her  bow  and,  with  the  other,  reaches  over  her 
shoulder  to  draw  an  arrow  from  her  quiver.  Sketchy  work. 

5.  Convex  peridot,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York  (King 

Coll.,  Catal.  No.  118). 


340 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


Apollo,  nude  save  for  his  mantle  thrown  over  one  arm, 
leaning  on  a  low  column  against  which  his  lyre  rests.  In  one 
hand  he  holds  his  bow.  Statuesque  motive. 

6.  Convex  carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Dionysos,  unbearded  and  nude  but  for  a  scarf  over  his 
arm,  shown  full  front,  leaning  on  a  low  column.  In  one  hand 
he  holds  a  thyrsos.  Fillets  hang  from  his  head. 

7.  Slightly  convex  carnelian ;  owner  unknown. 

A  nude  female  figure  with  necklace,  bracelets,  and 
anklets,  leaning  against  a  lavatory  basin  set  on  a  small  col¬ 
umn.  Her  arms  are  raised  as  if  arranging  her  hair.  In¬ 
scription,  IKDTTA,  held  by  Furtwangler  to  be  the  signature 
of  the  artist,  Skopas,  whose  identity  I  have  commented  on 
in  the  text.  Certainly  the  signature  here,  if  it  be  a  sig¬ 
nature,  does  not  comply  with  the  standard  of  unobtrusive¬ 
ness. 

8.  Strongly  convex  hyacinth,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  729). 

Apollo  in  a  pose  following  a  Praxitelean  motive,  the 
lower  part  of  his  body  draped.  He  seems  to  be  tuning  his 
lyre  which  he  rests  on  the  head  of  a  small,  draped  female 
figure,  perhaps  one  of  the  Hours,  who  holds  a  patera  in  her 
hand. 

9.  Four-sided  rectangular  amethyst,  bored  through  the  longer  axis, 

in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  5G3). 

On  each  of  the  four  sides  is  engraved  a  dancing  mainad 
in  flowing  drapery.  The  second  of  these  holds  a  serpent  in 
one  hand.  This  gem  may  be  Augustan  work. 

10.  Strongly  convex  garnet,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Odysseus,  bearded,  wearing  the  characteristic  pilos,  and 
nude  but  for  a  suggestion  of  drapery  over  one  arm.  One  foot 
is  raised,  resting  on  a  rock,  and  he  holds  a  rudder  in  his  hand. 

11.  Strongly  convex  hyacinth,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  815). 

Aphrodite  standing  with  a  mantle  draped  about  her  legs 
and  holding  the  child  Eros  by  the  wing.  He  is  playing 
a  large  lyre  and  seems  to  be  trying  to  escape.  The  inscrip¬ 
tion,  AAAIQNOC,  is  modem  and  was  probably  cut  in  in 
the  eighteenth  century. 

12.  Strongly  convex  garnet,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Agathe-Tyche,  draped  about  the  legs,  with  one  foot  raised 
on  a  rock  and  holding  a  large  cornucopia. 

13.  Convex  carnelian,  perhaps  a  ring-stone,  in  Hermitage  Museum, 

St.  Petersburg. 


HELLENISTIC  GEMS 


341 


Dionysos,  unbearded,  in  a  statuesque  pose,  leaning  on  a 
low  column.  His  legs  are  draped  and  a  mantle  is  thrown 
over  one  arm.  In  one  hand  he  hold  a  thyrsos  adorned  with 
long  streamers  and,  in  the  other,  a  kantliaros.  A  panther 
stands  at  his  feet.  This  gem  has  been  placed  in  Augustan 
times,  but  its  character  is  markedly  Hellenistic  and,  what¬ 
ever  the  date  of  the  work,  it  belongs  stylistically  and,  prob¬ 
ably,  actually  in  this  epoch. 

14.  Deep  red,  convex  carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

649). 

Athena,  fully  draped  and  leaning  on  her  shield.  She 
holds  a  helmet  in  one  hand  and  a  spear  rests  across  her 
arm.  The  motive  is  much  like  that  of  the  peaceful  Athena  of 
Pheidias.  The  inscription,  ON6CAC  €00,  in  two  lines, 
has,  after  some  hesitation,  been  definitely  accepted  by  Furt- 
wangler  as  the  signature  of  Onesas.  The  gem  itself  is  un¬ 
questionably  ancient. 

15.  Strongly  convex  brown  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Oatal.  No. 

1037). 

A  youthful  and  rather  effeminate-looking  god  with  mantle 
over  the  arms  and  about  the  legs  and  leaning  on  a  low  col¬ 
umn.  A  fillet  binds  his  hair.  The  lack  of  attributes  makes 
the  identity  doubtful  but  the  type  is  that  of  Apollo  or  Di¬ 
onysos. 

PLATE  XV 

Hellenistic  Gems  ( continued ) 

(These  are  all  ring-stones.) 

1.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6441). 

A  youth  and  two  girls  partially  draped  and  reclining 
on  couches  about  a  small,  round  table.  One  of  the  girls  holds 
a  wine  cup,  and  the  attitudes  of  all  express  the  hilarity  of 
the  occasion.  A  figure,  evidently  a  servant,  fantastically 
made  up  with  wings,  as  if  in  some  character,  brings  a  dish 
of  fruit.  At  the  other  side  stands  a  tall  lamp. 

2.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6458). 

An  ichneumon  approaching  an  erect  cobra  in  a  lotos 
swamp.  Probably  the  work  of  some  Alexandrian  gem-en¬ 
graver. 

3.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6437). 

Eros  bending  over  and  looking  into  a  large  krater. 


342 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


4.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6440). 

Aphrodite,  draped  about  the  legs,  leaning  against  a  low 
column  while,  beside  her,  Eros  wrestles  with  an  unwinged 
boy.  On  the  other  side  stands  an  ephebos  with  a  wreath  and 
a  palm-branch.  Beyond  the  wrestlers  is  a  bearded  Herm  of 
peculiar  shape  and,  behind  it,  a  branch  with  fruit  (?)  hang¬ 
ing  on  it.  Sketchy  work. 

5.  Convex  topaz,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1102). 

A  girl,  in  fluttering  drapery,  kneeling  on  a  rock  and 
bending  forward  to  lay  a  mask  before  an  ithyphallic  Herm. 
Sketchy  work. 

6.  Amethyst,  convex  on  both  sides,  cut  in  two  pieces  and  showing 

that  it  was  originally  bored  through;  in  Berlin  Museum 
(Catal.  No.  1100). 

On  one  side,  a  woman,  fully  draped,  leading  a  horse  be¬ 
neath  which  is  a  serpent.  (The  picture  on  the  other  side  is 
not  figured  here.) 

7.  Convex  topaz,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1101). 

A  sleeping  woman,  with  garment  draped  about  her  legs, 
behind  whom  stands  an  Eros  with  large  wings. 

8.  Convex  rock-crystal,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  3064). 

A  fully-draped  woman,  probably  Aphrodite,  holding  an 
undistinguishable  object  in  one  hand.  Before  her  stands  a 
small  Eros,  and  behind  is  a  decorated  column  on  which  is  a 
nude  statue  of  Aphrodite.  Sketchy  work. 

9.  Convex  garnet,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1127). 

Helmet  with  high,  flowing  crest  and  a  large  horn  project¬ 
ing  from  the  front.  Its  peculiar  form  resembles  types  on  the 
coins  of  Antiochos  VI  of  Syria. 

10.  Chalcedony,  from  Smyrna,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6955). 

Head  and  shoulders  of  the  Nereid,  Galene,  swimming 
with  hair  floating  out  behind  her. 

11.  Undescribed  stone,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Head  of  Isis  with  Egyptian  head-dress  and  long  ringlets 
arranged  in  the  Libyan  fashion. 

12.  Convex  hyacinth,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1040). 

Aphrodite,  a  garment  draped  about  her  legs,  with  one 
hand  resting  on  a  low  column  behind  her. 

13.  Carnelian  cut  in  octagonal  shape  at  some  later  time,  from  Asia 

Minor. 

A  warrior,  in  full  panoply,  kneeling  on  one  knee  before 
a  low  column  on  which  is  a  comedy  mask  to  which  he  is  offer- 


HELLENISTIC  GEMS 


343 


ing  a  wreath.  His  shield  and  spear  rest  against  the  col¬ 
umn.  Evidently  an  offering  to  Dionysos  in  recognition  of  aid 
in  battle. 

14.  Convex  hyacinth  (broken),  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

1368). 

A  nude  youth  with  one  foot  raised  as  if  to  bind  his 
sandal.  The  inscription,  IEIAIAI  CPOCI  ($ei<5ia?  inosi), 
in  two  lines,  is  the  signature  of  the  gem-engraver,  Pheidias. 

15.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6434). 

Zeus  Serapis,  a  mantle  over  one  shoulder  and  about  his 
legs,  with  a  kalathos  on  his  head  and  holding  a  long  sceptre. 
Beside  him  is  the  three-headed  dog  of  the  Underworld,  Ker¬ 
beros.  Work  of  the  school  of  Lysippos. 

16.  Carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

A  mounted  man  leading  a  pack-horse.  A  slave  going  be¬ 
fore  him  carries  a  slain  deer  on  his  shoulders.  Evidently  a 
return  from  the  hunt.  Sketchy  work. 

17.  Convex  agate,  from  Asia  Minor. 

Harpokrates,  nude  save  for  a  mantle  over  one  arm,  car¬ 
rying  a  cornucopia.  On  his  head  is  a  lotos  flower  and  his 
finger  is  at  his  lips  in  his  characteristic  gesture. 

18.  Convex  sard,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Head  of  Herakles  as  a  child  with  the  lion’s  skin  about 
his  neck. 

19.  Carnelian  scaraboid,  unbored,  with  the  picture  on  the  convex 

side. 

A  female  Herm-bust  with  fillet  and  long  ringlets. 

20.  Strongly  convex  garnet. 

A  dolphin. 

21.  Dark  convex  carnelian.  Formerly  in  my  collection  but  lost  in 

August,  1910.  Set  in  modern  silver  ring. 

A  nude,  bearded  man  running  and  bearing  a  torch  and 
a  palm-branch.  Evidently  the  signet  of  some  victor  in  the 
torch-race  and  assumed  in  commemoration  of  the  event.  The 
bent-knee  running  action  is  an  affectation  of  the  earlier  style. 


PLATE  XVI 

Hellenistic  Gems  ( concluded ) 

(These  are  ring-stones  except  when  otherwise  stated.) 

1.  Sardonyx  of  two  layers,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 


344 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


Bust-portrait  of  some  Hellenistic  king  with  fillet  diadem 
and  cloak.  The  eyes  are  widely  open.  The  likeness  resembles 
that  of  Antiochos  II  as  found  on  his  coinage.  The  gem  is 
too  large  for  a  ring  and  must  have  been  used  as  an  ornament. 

2.  Sardonyx  of  two  layers,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Bust-portrait  of  Mithridates  VI  (Eupator)  with  fillet 
diadem,  corselet,  and  cloak.  The  brooches  fastening  the  lat¬ 
ter  are  decorated  with  thunderbolts.  The  eyes  are  widely 
open,  showing  the  pupils,  and  the  beard  is  short.  The  gem 
is  much  too  large  for  any  ring  and  was  undoubtedly  an  orna¬ 
ment.  It  is  a  fine  example  of  the  portraiture  of  the  times. 

3.  Carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Bust-portrait,  with  tunic,  of  an  Hellenistic  queen  with 
hair  arrangement  like  that  on  coins  of  Berenike  II.  She 
wears  a  fillet  diadem  and  a  laurel  wreath. 

4.  Convex  carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Portrait-head  of  an  Hellenistic  king  wearing  a  diadem. 
The  prominent  eyes  have  the  Ptolemaic  character. 

5.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6953). 

Bust  of  a  laurel-crowned  woman  with  flowing  hair.  In 
one  hand  she  holds  a  serpent  before  her.  Doubtless  intended 
to  represent  some  prophetess  and  priestess  of  Apollo,  perhaps 
Kassandra. 

6.  Chalcedony,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  98.727). 

Bearded,  laurel-crowned  portrait-head,  not  unlike  the 
portraits  of  King  Perseus  of  Macedonia.  Some  doubt  has 
been  cast  on  the  genuineness  of  this  gem,  but  Furtwangler 
gives  it  as  Hellenistic  work.  He  seems  to  have  had  no  op¬ 
portunity  to  examine  the  stone  itself.  It  is  certainly  fine 
work. 

7.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1103). 

Nearly  full-face  head  of  Helios,  crowned  with  rays.  The 
eyes  are  widely  open  and  show  the  pupils. 

8.  Convex  brownish-yellow  chalcedony  sprinkled  with  yellow 

jasper,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1529). 

Portrait-head  resembling  that  of  Eumenes  I  of  Pergamos 
as  seen  on  his  coinage.  The  cloak  shows  about  his  shoulders. 

9.  Clear  yellowish-brown  sard,  sprinkled  with  yellowish  jasper, 

scaraboid,  bored  through,  with  the  picture  on  the  flat  surface; 
in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1009). 

Portrait-head  of  a  beardless  man  with  widely  open  eyes 
showing  the  pupils.  On  the  convex  side  of  the  stone  (not 


EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS 


345 


shown  here)  is  engraved  a  shield  bearing  a  Gorgbn’s  head 
with  wings  and  two  serpents  knotted  under  the  chin.  The 
date  of  this  gem  may  be  in  the  latter  half  of  the  fourth 
century  B.  C. 

10.  Convex  garnet  (chipped),  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Peters¬ 

burg. 

Female  head,  probably  a  portrait,  with  ear-rings  and  long 
hair. 

11.  Strongly  convex  garnet,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Idealistic  female  head  with  laurel  wreath  and  long  hair. 
The  eyes  are  widely  open. 

12.  Convex  carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1105). 

Nearly  full-face  bust  of  Zeus-Serapis  with  tunic  and 
mantle.  On  the  head  is  a  modius  ornamented  with  olive 
leaves.  The  cutting  is  very  deep. 

13.  Strongly  convex  garnet,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Head  of  a  youthful  satyr  with  goat’s  horns  and  a  fawn’s 
skin  fastened  under  his  chin. 

14.  Convex  garnet,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Portrait-bust  with  cloak  or  tunic  and  laurel  wreath. 

PLATE  XVII 

Early  Roman  Gems  Under  Etruscan  Influence 

(These  are  ring-stones  except  when  otherwise  stated.  The  scarabs 
are  bored  through  the  longer  axis.) 

1.  Carnelian,  owner  unknown. 

Two  Salii,  priests  of  Mars,  carrying,  hung  on  a  pole  be¬ 
tween  them,  five  squarish  ancilii  (sacred  shields),  the  sides 
indented  and  decorated  with  lines  and  dots.  The  first  priest 
has  in  his  hand  a  pointed  priest’s  cap  with  cheek-flaps,  and 
both  wear  helmets  and  short  coats.  Cable  border. 

2.  Carnelian  (somewhat  chipped),  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney 

Beatty,  New  York. 

A  warrior  with  helmet,  corselet,  spear,  sword,  and  shield 
bearing  the  device  of  a  thunderbolt.  He  is  leading  a  war- 
horse.  Inscription,  S  E.  Cable  border. 

3.  Dark  red  carnelian. 

Cheiron  teaching  the  young  Achilleus  to  play  the  lyre. 
Behind  him  is  a  column  against  which  leans  a  thyrsos.  Cable 
border.  Crude,  poor  work. 


34G 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


4.  Carnelian  scarab. 

Kapaneus,  nude  and  beardless,  with  helmet,  shield,  and 
sword,  falling  from  the  broken  ladder.  Cable  border. 

5.  Carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

A  young  hero,  nude  and  beardless,  his  shield  on  his  arm, 
his  helmet  fallen  off,  apparently  dying  but  writing,  with  his 
failing  strength,  the  word,  VI Cl,  on  the  shield  of  a  vanquished 
foe.  One  of  these  has  fallen  behind  the  shield  and  another  is 
sinking  down  in  the  background.  Undoubtedly  Orthryades, 
the  Spartan  hero  of  Thyrea  (compare  PI.  XXXII,  10). 

6.  Carnelian  scarab,  in  British  Museum. 

A  bearded  man  and  twTo  beardless  youths,  all  nude, 
around  whom  three  large  serpents  are  twining.  It  is  evi¬ 
dently  a  picture  of  the  death  of  Laocoon  and  his  sons.  The 
father  and  one  son  show  their  hair  disordered  and  as  if 
erect  with  fright.  The  other  youth’s  hair  has  the  rolled 
band  treatment  common  in  this  epoch.  Cable  border.  It  is 
possible  that  this  gem  may  be  late  Etruscan,  but  the  style  and 
the  subject  point  more  clearly  to  a  Roman  origin.  The  group, 
it  will  be  noticed,  is  not  at  all  like  that  in  the  Vatican. 

7.  Translucent  carnelian  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

292). 

A  cult  group  of  three  female  figures  in  long  garments, 
the  middle  one,  shown  in  full  front,  is  looking  up  toward  a 
sword  which  one  of  her  companions  holds  above  her.  She 
wears  a  necklace.  The  two  side  figures,  done  in  profile,  face 
toward  her  and  each  carries  a  small  pitcher.  Their  hair  is 
executed  with  parallel  strokes  and  is  arranged  with  the 
bunch  behind  common  in  this  epoch.  Cable  border. 

8.  Carnelian,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  98.722). 

A  beardless  warrior,  in  full  panoply  of  the  Italian  style, 
stooping  down  on  one  knee,  sword  in  hand  and  with  head 
bent  toward  the  ground.  His  corselet  is  elaborately  orna¬ 
mented  and  a  sphinx  is  depicted  on  the  back.  This  is  one 
of  a  considerable  number  of  pictures  about  the  subject  of 
which  Furtwangler  hazards  the  unsatisfying  guess  of  Decius 
Mus.  Cable  border  (compare  PI.  XXXII,  12). 

9.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  853). 

A  bearded  man,  with  hair  treated  characteristically  with 
the  bunch  behind  and  cloak  following  the  line  of  his  back, 
standing  with  raised  knife  before  an  altar  behind  which  is  a 
stag.  Doubtless  intended  for  Virbius,  the  male  counterpart 


EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS 


347 


(or  the  first  priest)  of  Diana  Nemorensis,  whom  the  Italians 
identified  with  Hyppolitos.  Cable  border. 

10.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  868). 

A  nude,  beardless  youth  with  a  curved  knife  in  his  hand, 
bending  over  a  goat's  head  which  he  holds  by  the  horn. 
Probably  one  of  the  Luperci  who  sacrificed  goats  in  honor  of 
Faunus.  Inscription,  CROSC,  part  of  the  owner’s  name. 
Cable  border. 

11.  Dark  brown  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  440). 

Hermes  Psychopompos,  beardless  and  with  cloak  follow¬ 
ing  the  curve  of  his  back,  bending  down  to  raise  up  a  soul 
from  the  Underworld.  He  carries  a  winged  caduceus.  The 
soul  is  indicated  by  a  man’s  head  and  one  arm,  the  hand 
of  which  the  god  holds.  Cable  border. 

12.  Slightly  convex  carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

873). 

A  nude,  beardless  warrior,  with  a  helmet  and  a  shield, 
standing  before  a  column  around  which  a  serpent  twines 
and  on  which  is  perched  a  bird.  A  ram  kneels  at  its  foot. 
Undoubtedly  a  hero  consulting  the  oracle  of  Mars  to 
whom  the  woodpecker  was  sacred  and  the  ram  offered  in 
sacrifice.  The  twining  serpent  suggests  the  oracular  idea. 
Inscription,  POTITI,  the  owner’s  name. 

13.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  647). 

Ajax,  bearded  and  in  full  panoply,  carrying  the  dead  body 
of  Achilleus,  also  in  full  panoply  but  beardless.  The  arrow 
of  Paris  is  fixed  in  the  latter’s  foot.  The  picture  and  lack 
of  border  show  the  influence  of  the  free  style. 

14.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  445). 

A  beardless  man,  with  a  sceptre  or  measuring  rod  and  a 
cloak  following  the  back  curve,  bending  over  the  upper  half  of 
a  human  figure.  Probably  intended  to  represent  Prometheus 
creating  a  man,  as  the  idea  was  accepted  in  the  Orphic  cults 
of  Italy.  Cable  border. 

15.  Brownish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  417). 

A  peasant,  in  tunic  and  cloak,  leaning  on  his  staff  and 
contemplating  a  head  which  lies  on  the  ground  before  him. 
One  of  a  large  group  of  pictures  with  evidently  a  definite 
meaning  but  of  which  no  satisfying  interpretation  has  been 
offered.  Cable  border. 

16.  Dark  carnelian  or  sard,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York 

(King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  243). 


348 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


A  beardless  man,  with  cloak  following  his  back-line, 
shaping  with  an  adze  the  stem-piece  of  a  ship.  Doubtless 
Argos  at  work  on  the  Argo. 

17.  Chalcedony  or  white  carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

799). 

Oidipous,  nude  and  beardless,  standing  with  his  sword  at 
his  side  before  a  rock  on  which  is  the  Sphinx  whose  riddle  he 
is  answering. 

18.  Brownish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  488). 

A  bearded  man,  in  corselet  and  cloak  following  his  back- 
line,  standing,  with  a  sacrificial  dish  in  one  hand  and  a  raised 
knife  in  the  other,  before  an  altar  on  which  is  the  upper  half 
of  the  body  of  a  beardless  youth.  Evidently  a  representa¬ 
tion  of  human  sacrifice  not  unknown  in  the  Italian  cults. 
Cable  border. 

19.  Carnelian  with  white  stripes,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

850). 

A  nude,  beardless  man,  in  a  pointed  priest’s  cap  and  car¬ 
rying  a  lituus  (augur’s  wand),  standing,  with  hand  raised  as 
if  in  adoration,  before  a  palm  tree.  Though  squarish  in  shape 
the  gem  lacks  the  usual  border. 

20.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  472). 

A  nude,  beardless  youth,  his  hair  treated  with  the  side- 
roll  and  the  bunch  behind  as  is  characteristic  of  the  later 
severe  style,  standing  with  a  sword  in  one  hand  and  a  severed 
head  in  the  other.  One  of  a  long  line  of  unexplained  pictures. 
Cable  border. 

21.  Banded  agate  scarab,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  422). 

A  bearded  man,  with  a  cloak  wrapped  about  his  hips  and 
legs,  holding  a  sacrificial  dish  from  which  hangs  what  seems 
to  be  a  chain  with  a  ring  attached  over  an  altar  with  a  cover 
and  a  branch  thrown  about  it.  Inscription,  in  Greek  letters, 
ANNIA-  CGBACTH:  the  name  of  the  owner,  Annia  Augusta, 
turned  into  Greek.  Cable  border. 

22.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  392). 

A  bearded  man,  in  a  cloak,  writing  on  a  tablet  what  seems 
to  be  the  oracular  response  given  by  a  head  which,  with 
part  of  the  body  attached,  rises  from  the  ground  before  him. 
Furtwangler  has  interpreted  this  line  of  pictures  very  satis¬ 
factorily  as  Orphic  signets  showing  the  head  of  Orpheus, 
fabled  to  have  been  kept  at  Antissa,  in  Lesbos,  where  it  ut¬ 
tered  the  oracles  of  Apollo. 


EARLY  ROMAN  OEMS 


349 


23.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Two  nude  youths,  one  with  a  cloak  over  his  arm  and 
holding  an  unidentifiable  object,  the  other  holding  a  branch. 
They  are  probably  Orestes  and  Pylades.  The  hair  is  done 
with  the  roll  arrangement  of  the  severe  Greek  styles. 

24.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  623). 

A  bearded  hero,  with  helmet,  greaves,  sword,  spear,  and 
a  shield  bearing  the  device  of  a  star,  standing  over  and 
evidently  protecting  a  fallen  hero,  also  bearded.  The  latter 
wears  a  helmet  and  a  tunic  which  has  fallen  from  one  shoul¬ 
der.  Possibly  the  defending  hero  is  Ajax.  Cable  border. 

25.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  749). 

A  bearded  priest,  with  his  cloak  wrapped  about  his  hips 
and  legs,  leading  a  bull  for  sacrifice  to  a  wreathed  altar.  In 
the  background  are  two  bearded  attendants,  one  with  a  double 
sacrificial  axe.  Beyond  the  altar  is  a  leafless  tree.  Be¬ 
neath  the  picture  is  a  sort  of  criss-cross  line  and  dot  orna¬ 
mentation. 

PLATE  XVIII 

Early  Roman  Gems  Under  Hellenistic  Influence 
(These  are  all  ring-stones.) 

1.  Convex  brownish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1312). 

Herakles,  bearded  and  nude,  micturating.  His  lion-skin 
is  thrown  over  his  shoulder  and  he  carries  his  club. 

2.  Convex  dark  brownish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

1376). 

Odysseus,  bearded  and  nude  save  for  the  cloak  thrown 
over  his  arm,  seems  to  be  returning  to  his  home.  He  wears 
the  pointed  pilos  on  his  head.  The  same  subject  appears  on 
the  coins  of  the  Mamilian  gens.  Inscription,  M  -VOL;  the 
owner’s  abbreviated  name,  doubtless  a  member  of  that  family. 

3.  Unknown  convex  stone,  in  Berlin  Museum  ( ?). 

A  horseman,  with  corselet,  helmet,  shield,  lance,  and 
sword,  pitching  forward  from  his  stumbling  horse.  It  is  un¬ 
doubtedly  a  picture  of  Marcus  Curtius  plunging,  as  a  self- 
chosen  sacrifice,  into  the  chasm  that  opened  in  the  Forum. 

4.  Convex  carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Kassandra  seated,  fully  draped  and  embracing  the  Pal¬ 
ladium  which  stands  on  a  wreathed  altar. 


350 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


5.  Convex  carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Urania  seated,  fully  draped  and  holding  a  globe  on  which 
she  seems  to  be  writing. 

6.  Brownish  sard,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York  (King 

Coll.,  Catal.  No.  166). 

Two  Roman  knights  attacking  two  Gauls,  distinguished 
by  the  Gallic  shield,  one  of  whom  has  fallen  and  the  other, 
sunk  on  one  knee,  still  defends  himself. 

7.  Convex  amethyst,  from  Rome,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

1716). 

Dancing  satyr  with  small  horns,  nude  save  for  a  goat’s 
skin  thrown  over  his  arm.  Before  him  is  a  pedum.  Inscrip¬ 
tion,  Q-C;  the  owner’s  initials. 

8.  Convex  brownish  sard,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Liber,  bearded,  in  long  tunic  and  mantle,  holding  a 
thyrsos  with  fillets  and  with  a  wreath  about  his  shoulders. 

9.  Slightly  convex  chalcedony  with  moss-agate  striations. 

Cupid  riding  on  a  rooster  emblematic  of  desire. 

10.  Convex  brownish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1625). 

Cupid  rolling  a  hoop. 

11.  Deep  brownish  convex  sard,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Peters¬ 

burg. 

An  old  shepherd,  in  a  short  tunic  and  cloak,  leaning  on 
a  staff  with  three  sheep  before  him.  Inscription,  M-AL  B*H  1 L; 
in  two  lines;  the  owner’s  name  abbreviated. 

12.  Clear  brownish  convex  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

2233). 

A  club  with  a  bird  perched  on  it.  Beneath,  a  dart.  In¬ 
scription,  PROTEMV£;  the  owner’s  name. 

13.  Convex  brownish  sard  with  striations. 

A  peacock. 

14.  Convex  carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  2037). 

A  lion  attacked  by  a  large  ant. 

15.  Convex  brownish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1248). 

An  actor  wearing  a  mask  representing  the  slave  of  the 
comedies  and  running.  Inscription,  M;  the  owner’s  initial. 

16.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6711). 

A  shoe.  Inscription,  MEMENTO. 

17.  Convex  brownish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1798). 

An  eagle  with  spread  wings,  his  body  a  man’s  head.  Pos¬ 
sibly  the  combination  is  inspired  by  the  Ganymedes  myth. 

18.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6616). 


EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS 


351 


A  winged  Gorgon  head  from  which  issue  three  legs  and 
three  ears  of  grain;  the  Sicilian  emblem.  Inscription, 
E V°HEM I  (Euphemi)  ;  the  owner’s  name  in  the  genitive 
with  two  letters  ligatured. 

19.  Clear  brownish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6517). 

A  dwarf,  in  pointed  cap  and  cloak,  blowing  a  double 
flute. 

20.  Convex  brownish  sard,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1624). 

A  sun-dial  on  a  column  with  a  sword  behind  it  and  a 
helmet  lying  on  the  ground.  Inscription,  A  FOL;  the 
owner’s  name  abbreviated.  (On  the  flat  side  has  been  added 
at  a  much  later  period  the  laureated  head  of  a  young  em¬ 
peror,  perhaps  Commodus.  See  PI.  XXI,  8.) 

21.  Convex  garnet,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1950). 

Female  comedy  mask  with  a  head-cloth.  Inscription, 
APOLLON  IDES;  the  owner’s  name. 

22.  Dark  brownish  convex  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

1783). 

Bust  of  Victory,  winged  and  with  a  palm-branch.  On  the 
head  is  a  lotos  flower  indicating  a  combination  of  Victory 
and  Isis. 

23.  Convex  carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Head  of  Libya  decked  with  the  skin  of  an  elephant’s  head 
with  trunk  and  tusks. 

24.  Clear  brownish  convex  sard,  from  Rome,  in  Berlin  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  1759). 

Bust  of  a  young  satyr  or  river-god  with  pointed  ears 
and  short  horns.  Inscription,  C  ;  the  owner’s  initial. 

25.  Carnelian,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York  (King  Coll., 

Catal.  No.  256). 

Portrait  head  of  a  bald  man  with  part  of  the  rim  of  a 
shield  in  front.  This  is  the  stone  which  Dr.  King  thinks, 
on  the  score  of  its  resemblance  to  the  denarii  likenesses,  may 
have  been  the  signet  of  Marcellus  which  Hannibal  used  on 
forged  letters  after  the  death  of  the  Roman  general.  I  have 
introduced  the  gem  here  for  that  reason,  but  the  assumption, 
while  most  interesting,  does  not  seem  to  me  very  probable. 
208  B.  C.  was  a  pretty  early  date  for  Roman  gem-portraiture, 
though,  of  course,  a  Roman  might  have  had  his  portrait  cut 
by  a  Greek  of  Southern  Italy.  Moreover,  I  cannot  quite  dis¬ 
miss  a  suspicion  of  the  antiquity  of  the  gem. 


352 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


PLATE  XIX 

Early  Roman  Gems  Under  the  Combining  Etruscan  and  Hellen¬ 
istic  Influences 

(These  are  all  ring-stones.) 

1.  Slightly  convex  carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  998). 

Liber,  bearded,  seated  on  a  rock,  his  cloak  about  his  legs 
and  a  thyrsos  over  his  shoulder,  reaching  out  his  hand  for  a 
goblet  which  a  bearded,  horse-tailed  Seilenos,  also  with  a 
thyrsos  and  a  cloak  over  his  arm  and  about  his  thighs,  holds, 
while  a  satyr  fills  it  from  a  wine-skin.  Behind  Seilenos  a 
vine  is  growing.  Cable  border.  It  is  possible  that  this  gem 
may  belong  to  early  imperial  times. 

2.  Reddish  brown  sard,  in  British  Museum. 

Artemis,  clothed  in  a  long  garment  with  one  breast  and 
shoulder  bare,  holding  her  bow  in  one  hand  and,  with  the 
other,  the  horn  of  a  stag  that  stands  beside  her.  The  hair 
shows  a  band  of  dots  with  a  braid  hanging  behind.  The  in¬ 
scription,  HEIOY,  Furtwangler  holds  to  be  genuine:  the 
name  of  a  Roman  owner,  but  it  seems  to  me  very  unlike  most 
of  the  work  of  its  kind  on  these  gems,  especially,  in  its 
regular  placing,  which  is  more  as  the  later  forgers  did  such 
things.  Cable  border,  nearly  worn  away  by  the  repolishing 
to  which  the  stone  has  been  subjected. 

3.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  947). 

Psyche  with  butterfly-wings  and  in  long  tunic.  With 
one  hand  she  holds  up  the  bottom  of  her  robe  and  with  the 
other  she  draws  out  the  top  with  the  bent-arm  gesture 
peculiar  to  Nemesis.  This  Psyche-Nemesis  combination  is 
very  interesting.  The  style  of  work  shows  a  lingering  Etrus¬ 
can  influence  but  the  picture  type  and  the  lack  of  border  in¬ 
dicate  its  failing  force. 

4.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6468). 

A  pantheistic  male  figure,  nude  but  for  the  cloak  over 
his  arm.  He  wears  the  helmet  of  Mars,  whose  sword  and 
shield  are  at  his  feet.  Also,  he  carries  the  winged  caduceus 
of  Mercury  and  the  cornucopia  of  Fortuna.  One  foot  is  raised 
and  rests  upon  the  orb  of  the  World.  A  most  interesting 
conception  suggesting  the  World-power  of  Rome  under  the 
fostering  care  of  the  gods. 


EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS 


353 


5.  Sardonyx  of  two  layers,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

929). 

Eros,  nude,  winged,  and  rising  on  bis  toes  as  if  to  sug¬ 
gest  flight.  His  arms  are  in  the  position  of  drawing  a  bow 
which,  however,  is  not  figured.  Interesting  as  showing  a 
reversion  to  the  earlier  type  of  the  youthful  Eros. 

6.  Garnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

A  fully  dressed  girl  seated  under  a  tree,  as  if  sleeping, 
with  her  hands  on  her  knees.  Before  her  are  a  kalathos,  an 
ant,  and  two  ears  of  grain.  Above  is  a  bird  perched  on  a 
wreathed  thyrsos.  The  interpretation  of  this  picture  is  ex¬ 
plained  at  length  at  the  end  of  Chap.  YI.  Exergue  filled  with 
cross-strokes. 

7.  Blackish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6643). 

Symbols:  a  hand  holding  a  winged  caduceus;  above,  a 
butterfly,  perhaps  Psyche,  and  a  club.  Inscription,  in  lig¬ 
atured  letters,  MO  (amo).  The  whole  is  apparently  an  in¬ 
vocation  by  the  wearer  of  strength  and  cunning  in  the  cause 
of  love. 

8.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  932). 

A  fully  clothed  female  figure  standing  in  a  flower,  prob¬ 
ably  Aphrodite.  In  each  hand  she  holds  a  branch  with  fruit 
on  it.  The  symbolism  seems  to  convey  the  idea  of  the  fructi¬ 
fying  power  of  the  goddess. 

9.  Brownish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6518). 

Two  skeletons,  one  of  whom  is  crowning  the  other.  Sig¬ 
nificant  of  the  shortness  of  life  and  the  moral  that  it  is  best 
to  enjoy  it.  Probably  the  signet  of  some  philosophic  Epi¬ 
curean. 

10.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6780). 

Psyche,  with  butterfly  wings  and  fully  draped,  her  hands 
bound  behind  her,  is  seated  on  an  altar  before  a  column 
upon  which  is  a  statue  of  Aphrodite  whom  she  seems  to  be 
beseeching  for  mercy. 

11.  Carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Symbols:  The  rudder  of  Fortuna  and  an  ear  of  grain. 
Inscription,  with  many  ligatures,  FLOS "R  A I  (Philostrati)  ; 
the  owner’s  name  in  the  genitive. 

12.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6566). 

A  boar  with  grain  (?)  or  acorns  (?)  on  the  ground  be¬ 
fore  him,  and  a  rooster  with  an  ear  of  grain  in  his  beak.  In 
the  field,  a  caduceus  and  a  club.  Cable  border. 


354 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


13.  Convex  brown  paste,  in  the  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New 

York. 

Aphrodite  or  Leda  with  a  mantle  on  one  arm  and  a  swan 
beside  her. 

14.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  944). 

Herm  bust  of  Psyche  with  butterfly-wings. 

15.  Chalcedony,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6524). 

A  locust  or  grasshopper  armed  with  a  sword  and  shield. 

16.  Slightly  convex  carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1439). 

Poseidon,  bearded  and  nude  save  for  a  cloak  over  his 
arm,  with  his  foot  on  the  prow  of  a  ship  and  holding  his 
trident  in  one  hand  and  a  dolphin  in  the  other.  A  forerun¬ 
ner  of  one  of  the  established  types  of  a  later  period. 

17.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7082). 

Heads  of  a  horse,  ram,  and  bull  with  an  ear  of  grain 
in  its  mouth.  This  gem  may  belong  to  the  imperial  period. 

18.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6677). 

A  Corinthian  helmet  decorated  with  a  Pegasos,  a  buck, 
and  a  sphinx. 

19.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6528). 

Herm  bust  of  Hypnos  with  butterfly-wings  and  fillet. 

20.  Convex  carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1263). 

A  bearded  philosopher,  with  his  mantle  about  his  legs, 
seated  in  a  chair  before  an  ithyphallic,  bearded  Herm  and 
writing  on  his  tablets. 

21.  Red  jasper,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6536). 

A  rather  poor  portrait-head  of  Pompey  resembling  those 
on  his  coins.  Inscription,  P  P.  Late  work  of  the  period. 

22.  Brownish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1873). 

Portrait-head  of  some  poet  or  actor  with  a  comedy  mask 
and  a  club  (?)  in  the  field. 


PLATE  XX 

Signed  Graeco-Roman  Gems  oe  the  Early  Empire 

(Except  when  too  large  the  gems  on  this  plate  are  ring-stones.) 
1.  Bluish  aquamarine,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1281). 

Head  of  the  youthful  Hercules,  his  club  over  his  shoul¬ 
der.  A  charming  work  which  goes  back  to  some  Praxitelean 
model.  Beneath,  in  very  light  lettering,  is  the  inscription, 
TNAIOC;  the  signature  of  the  artist,  Gnseus,  as  well  held 


SIGNED  GR2EC0-R0MAN  GEMS 


355 


by  Furtwangler,  though  A.  S.  Murray  thinks  it  an  owner’s 
name.  A  strong  argument  for  its  genuineness  is  that  it  stood 
on  the  gem  at  least  as  early  as  1606  when  Faber,  in  his  com¬ 
mentaries  on  the  Imagines  of  Fulvius  Ursinus  (p.  66),  men¬ 
tions  it.  Gnaeus  was  evidently  a  Roman,  who  Hellenicised  his 
name  for  obvious  business  reasons. 

2.  Clear  yellowish  carnelian,  in  British  Museum. 

Hermes,  nude  save  for  the  mantle  thrown  over  one  shoul¬ 
der,  his  caduceus  in  one  hand  and  a  sacrificial  dish  containing 
a  ram’s  head  in  the  other.  He  stands  in  profile  with  his  head 
turned  full-face,  the  pose  suggesting  Praxiteles.  Inscription, 
AIOCKOYPIAOY;  the  signature  of  Dioskourides,  the  greatest 
gem-engraver  of  Augustan  times. 

3.  Carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Filleted  head  of  Apollo  with  cloak.  Inscription,  YAAOY; 
the  signature  of  the  artist,  Hyllos,  son  of  Dioskourides.  Be¬ 
hind  the  neck  are  the  letters  LAVR-MED,  showing  that 
the  gem  once  belonged  to  Lorenzo  dei  Medici. 

4.  Glass-paste  in  imitation  of  a  hyacinth,  formerly  among  the  Marl¬ 

borough  gems. 

A  nude  athlete  anointing  himself  with  oil  from  a  hydra 
which  stands  on  a  small  table  beside  him.  Evidently  a  copy 
from  some  statue.  Inscription,  FNAIOY  ;  the  Hellenicised  sig¬ 
nature  of  Gnaeus,  in  the  genitive. 

5.  Carnelian,  last  noted  as  in  the  Devonshire  Collection. 

Diomedes,  nude  save  for  the  cloak  thrown  over  his  arm, 
seated  upon  a  wreathed  altar  with  the  Palladium  in  one  hand 
and  his  sword  in  the  other.  Before  him  stands  a  statue  on 
a  column  at  whose  base  lies  a  dead  priest.  Inscription, 
AIOCKOYPIAOY ;  the  signature  of  the  artist.  The  idea  seems 
to  have  been  taken  from  some  painting,  perhaps  one  by 
Polygnotos. 

6.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6984). 

Portrait  of  Sextus  Pompeius,  with  short  beard  and 
moustache,  similar  to  that  on  his  gold  coins.  Inscription, 
AfAOANrCAOY  ( Agathangelou)  ;  the  signature  of  the  artist. 

7.  Aquamarine,  last  noted  as  in  the  Devonshire  Collection. 

A  youthful,  unbearded  Hercules,  his  lion-skin  over  his 
arm  and  bearing  on  his  shoulder  either  the  Marathon  bull 
or  one  of  the  oxen  of  Geryones.  Probably  copied  from  a 
statue.  Inscription,  ANT6PUJTOC  ;  the  signature  of  the 
artist,  Anteros. 


356 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


8.  Cloudy  chalcedony,  rather  large  to  have  been  used  conveni¬ 

ently  as  a  ring-stone,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1256). 

Head  of  Medousa  in  profile  with  flowing  hair  with  which 
serpents  are  mingled.  Furtwangler  regards  the  type  as  of 
about  400  B.  C.,  and  suggests  that  this  may  be  an  Augustan 
copy  from  the  ancient  painting  of  the  Gorgon  by  Timoma- 
chos.  Inscription,  IOAQNOC,  the  name  of  the  gem-engraver, 
Solon. 

This  is  the  famous  Strozzi  Medousa,  and  the  antiquity 
of  both  the  gem  and  the  signature,  especially  the  latter,  has 
been  the  subject  of  violent  dispute.  The  weight  of  author¬ 
ities,  including  Furtwangler’s  strong  pronunciamento,  is  in 
favor  of  the  head’s  genuineness.  I  have  not  had  an  oppor¬ 
tunity  to  examine  the  stone  itself,  but  there  is  certainly  some¬ 
thing  suspiciously  dramatic  about  the  picture.  As  for  the 
signature,  Furtwangler  first  denied  its  authenticity  but 
finally  supported  it,  though  his  arguments  are  not  altogether 
convincing  to  me.  His  final  argument  is  on  p.  192  of  Yol. 
II,  of  his  Die  Antiken  Gemmen.  Also  there  is  an  interesting 
dissertation  on  the  subject  on  p.  148  of  the  Gem  Catalogue  of 
the  British  Museum.  The  stone  is  very  beautiful  and  is  cer¬ 
tainly  worth  including  here,  if  only  as  an  example  of  one  of 
the  knotty  problems  that  have  divided  the  experts. 

9.  Red  jasper,  also  very  large  for  a  ring-stone,  in  Vienna  Mu¬ 

seum. 

Bust  of  Athena,  copied  from  the  Athena  Parthenos  of 
Pheidias.  Inscription,  ACIIACIOY;  the  signature  of  the 
artist,  Aspasios. 

10.  Carnelian  (calcined),  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  2296). 

Aphrodite,  with  a  mantle  about  her  legs,  necklace,  and 
bracelets,  seated  upon  a  rock  and  amusing  Cupid  by  balanc¬ 
ing  a  rod  on  one  finger.  The  character  of  the  picture  is  of 
the  fourth  century  B.  C.,  from  which  it  is  probably  copied. 
Inscription,  AYAOC ;  the  name  of  the  artist,  Aulus,  in  the 
nominative  and  Hellenicised. 

11.  Slightly  convex  aquamarine,  much  too  large  for  any  ring, 

in  Bibliotheque  Nationale,  Paris  (Coll.  Chabouillet,  No. 
2089). 

Bust-portrait  of  Julia,  daughter  of  the  Emperor,  Titus, 
her  hair  elaborately  dressed  in  the  style  of  the  period.  In¬ 
scription,  6YOAOC  6TTOI6I;  the  signature  of  the  artist, 
Evodos. 


GRAECO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE  357 


12.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum. 

Nike,  winged,  with  mantle  about  her  legs  and  sword  in 
hand,  bending  over,  as  if  to  offer  in  sacrifice  a  bull  which 
has  sunk  down.  Inscription,  CQCTPATOY;  the  signature  of 
the  artist,  Sostratos. 

13.  Red  jasper,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  2293). 

Herm-bust  of  the  bearded  Dionysos  crowned  with  vine 
leaves  and  fillets.  After  some  original  of  the  Pheidian  epoch. 
Inscription,  ACTTACIOY;  the  signature  of  Aspasios. 

14.  Sardonyx  of  six  layers,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6866). 

Theseus,  nude  save  for  scarf  hanging  over  one  arm  and 
holding  his  club  in  the  other  hand.  A  work  very  much 
in  the  style  of  Polycleitos.  Inscription,  YAAOY;  a  signature 
of  Hyllos. 

15.  Amethyst,  in  Bibliothbque  Nationale,  Paris  (Coll.  Chabouillet, 

No.  1815). 

Achilleus,  nude,  seated  on  a  rock  over  which  his  garment 
is  thrown,  and  playing  a  lyre.  Before  him  his  sword  hangs 
on  a  tree  against  the  foot  of  which  rests  his  shield  ornamented 
with  a  Gorgon’s  head  and  with  running  deer  in  the  outer 
circle.  Behind,  on  the  rock,  is  his  helmet.  Inscription, 
flAM-HAOY;  the  signature  of  the  artist,  Pamphilos. 


PLATE  XXI 

Gr^co-Roman  Gems  of  the  Early  Empire  ( continued ) 

(These  are  all  ring -stones.) 

1.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  758). 

Bust  of  the  Muse,  Melpomene,  with  flowing  hair  and 
tunic.  Before  her  is  a  comedy  mask  on  a  column.  Inscrip¬ 
tion,  NAIOY;  the  signature  of  Gnseus  with  the  F  omitted. 
Both  gem  and  signature  have  been  strongly  questioned  by 
several  authorities,  but  Dr.  Furtwiingler  later  changed  his 
views  and  held  them  to  be  genuine.  I  have  not  myself  been 
able  to  examine  the  stone.  If  a  forgery  it  is  a  very  clever 
one. 

2.  Carnelian  (badly  broken),  from  Smyrna,  in  Berlin  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  3179). 

The  upper  part  of  a  youthful  head,  the  hair  bound  with 
a  fillet  and  treated  in  the  style  of  the  fifth  century  B.  C. 


358 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


3.  Convex  amethyst,  in  British  Museum. 

Cupid  seated  before  a  trophy  with  his  hands  bound  be¬ 
hind  his  back.  Over  his  head  is  the  inscription,  AYAOY;  the 
signature  of  the  artist,  Aulus. 

4.  Dull  greenish  plasma,  in  British  Museum. 

Winged  head  of  Medousa  with  serpents  in  her  hair.  In¬ 
scription,  CUUCOCA6;  the  signature  of  the  artist,  Soso- 
kles. 

5.  Carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6981). 

A  portrait-head  with  ears  pointed  like  a  satyr’s,  ivy 
wreath,  and  a  fawn-skin  about  the  neck.  Before  him  is  the 
face  of  a  bearded  mask.  Probably  the  portrait  of  some 
comedian.  Done  in  Hellenistic  style. 

6.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6985). 

Bather  idealized  portrait  of  Julius  Caesar  with  laurel 
crown  and  with  a  lituus  and  a  star  in  the  field.  Probably  a 
work  of  the  principiate  of  Augustus,  though  there  seems  to  me 
a  possibility  of  its  being  a  modern  forgery. 

7.  Carnelian  (somewhat  broken),  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

6972). 

Head  of  Sokrates. 

8.  Convex  brownish  sard,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  1624). 

This  gem  was  early  Roman  work  under  Hellenistic  in¬ 
fluence,  with  a  sun-dial  and  the  owner’s  name  on  the  convex 
side.  (See  PI.  XVIII,  20).  The  present  portrait  of  a  youth¬ 
ful,  beardless  emperor,  with  laurel  crown  and  fillets,  was 
added  on  the  flat  side  in  imperial  times. 

9.  Light  translucent  carnelian,  from  Viterbo,  in  collection  of  W. 

Gedney  Beatty,  New  York. 

A  full-face  tragedy  mask,  with  hair  banked  up  on  top 
and  falling  down  on  both  sides,  done  almost  entirely  with 
the  drill  and  somewhat  damaged  by  repolishing.  This  may 
be  a  somewhat  earlier  work. 

10.  Light  translucent  carnelian. 

A  comedy  mask  in  profile  with  a  pedum  in  the 
field. 

11.  Flat,  truncated  chalcedony,  in  collection  of  Nestor  Sanborn, 

New  York. 

Head  of  Harpokrates  with  upper  part  of  the  body.  The 
hair  is  bound  with  a  fillet  and  crowned  with  a  lotos  flower, 
and  the  finger  is  raised  toward  the  lips  in  the  customary 
gesture.  Behind  is  a  cornucopia. 


GRAECO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE  359 


12.  Slightly  convex  red  jasper. 

A  dolphin  with  a  bearded  mask  for  a  head.  Luck-bring¬ 
ing  combination.  Crude  work. 

13.  Yellowish  carnelian. 

Two  combined  masks,  one  of  them  of  the  Seilenos  type. 
Luck-bringing  combination.  Crude  work. 

14.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  G934). 

Head  of  Apollo  with  fillet  aud  flowing  hair.  The  edge 
of  a  cloak  or  tunic  shows  below  the  neck. 

15.  Red  jasper,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8524). 

A  bearded  Seilenos  mask  with  a  boar’s  head  joined  at 
the  back  and  a  second  mask  forming  the  boar’s  under  jaw. 
Luck-bringing  combination.  Crude  work. 

16.  Convex  plasma,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Bust  of  Jupiter  with  laurel  crown. 

17.  Convex  sard  (calcined),  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty, 

New  York. 

Head  of  Jupiter  Serapis  crowned  with  the  modius. 
Above  is  a  crescent,  before  him,  a  sun  or  star  and,  flying 
toward  him,  a  winged  Victory  with  a  wreath  which  she  is 
about  to  place  on  his  head.  Below  is  an  eagle  perched  on 
an  ox’s  skull.  A  common  subject  of  imperial  times,  though 
the  ox’s  skull  is  rare  and  suggests  Mithraic  influence. 

18.  Carnelian  (somewhat  broken),  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal  No. 

6967). 

A  copy  bust  from  the  famous  Amazon  statue  of  Kresilas. 

19.  Carnelian  of  different  shades,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New 

York  (King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  65). 

Bearded  and  veiled  head,  perhaps  of  Saturn.  If  so,  it  is 
a  very  rare  gem  subject  which  Dr.  King  suggests  may  have 
been  the  signet  of  one  of  the  Sentia  gens  in  which  Saturninus 
was  a  cognomen. 

20.  Convex  carnelian  (somewhat  broken),  in  British  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  561). 

Head  and  body  of  a  reclining  mainad  holding  a  bearded 
comedy  mask  in  her  hand  and  with  a  thyrsos  lying  across  her 
arm.  Her  garment  is  about  her  hips.  Inscription,  AIOCK; 
a  modern  forgery  of  the  signature  of  Dioskourides. 

21.  Carnelian  (broken),  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6872). 

A  nude  youth,  with  a  pedum,  holding  a  fawn  by  one  foot 
before  a  column  on  which  stands  a  statue  of  the  bearded 
Dionysos  with  thyrsos  and  kantharos.  Behind  the  column  is 


360 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


a  tree.  Possibly  but  not  very  probably  Pan.  Fine  work 
showing  the  influence  of  Polycleitos. 

PLATE  XXII 

Graeco-Roman  Gems  op  the  Early  Empire  ( continued ) 

(These  are  ring-stones  except  when  otherwise  stated.) 

1.  Slightly  convex  carnelian,  too  large  for  a  ring-signet  and  very 

deeply  cut,  so  as  to  be  effective  as  an  ornament ;  in  Hermitage 
Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Bust  of  Medousa  with  serpents  mingled  with  her  filleted 
hair  and  wings  on  her  head.  On  her  breast  is  a  gorget  of 
scales  with  a  serpent  collar. 

2.  Strongly  convex  amethyst,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  2298). 

Dionysos,  bearded,  in  a  long  tunic  and  with  a  fawn-skin 
thrown  over  his  shoulder  and  girt  about  him.  In  one  hand 
he  carries  his  thyrsos,  in  the  other  a  bunch  of  grapes.  It  is 
possible  that  this  gem  is  Hellenistic  work. 

3.  Unknown  stone  and  owner.  The  cast  shows  that  the  gem  is 

somewhat  broken. 

Representation  of  a  chariot  race  in  the  circus  with  four 
four-horse  chariots  driving  down  one  of  the  sides.  Behind 
the  last  is  a  man  on  horse-back  and,  in  the  midst,  one  on  foot, 
evidently  thrown  from  his  car.  Above  is  shown  the  long 
central  wall  or  spina  and,  at  each  end,  the  three  conical 
pillars  marking  the  starting  and  turning  points.  In  the 
middle  is  the  obelisk  which,  after  Augustus’  time,  took  the 
place  of  the  ship’s  mast  which  had  previously  stood  there. 
On  the  spina  are,  also,  the  figure  of  the  winged  Victory  with 
a  wreath,  another  statue,  and  the  altars  and  small  shrines 
with  which  it  was  decorated.  The  whole  is  a  most  interest¬ 
ing  and  illuminating  record,  dating  certainly  later  than 
Augustus  and,  probably,  in  the  second  century,  when  the 
chariot  races  had  become  very  popular.  Several  gems  show 
similar  pictures. 

4.  Convex  carnelian,  from  Rome,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

2296). 

Apollo,  nude,  standing  by  a  column  on  which  is  a  vase,  his 
bow  and  arrows  in  one  hand,  a  laurel  wreath  with  fillets 
in  the  other.  The  motive  is  taken  from  some  statue  of  the 
Pheidian  epoch. 


GR2EC0-R0MAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE  361 


5.  Convex  amethyst,  too  large  for  a  ring-signet  and  very  deeply  cut 

so  as  to  be  effective  as  an  ornament;  in  Hermitage  Museum, 
St.  Petersburg. 

A  woman  with  garment  about  her  legs,  probably  Aphro¬ 
dite,  riding  a  sea-dragon.  She  holds  a  shell  in  her  hand  and, 
above,  floats  a  Cupid. 

6.  Unknown  stone  and  owner. 

Mask  of  the  bearded  Dionysos,  with  wreath  of  flowers  and 
flowing  hair. 

7.  Unknown  stone  and  owner. 

Bearded  mask,  probably  of  Pan,  with  long  hair  and  bud¬ 
ding  horns  on  the  forehead. 

8.  Banded  agate  (calcined  by  fire  and  broken). 

Hygeia,  her  mantle  about  her  legs  and  with  one  foot 
raised  on  what  looks  like  a  shield  with  indented  sides.  She 
holds  her  serpent  in  one  hand  and  is  feeding  it  from  a  horn 
which  she  holds  in  the  other. 

9.  Chalcedony  scaraboid,  in  Ashmolean  Museum,  Oxford.  (The 

following  picture  has  been  cut,  probably  about  100  A.  D.,  on 
the  convex  side  of  a  scaraboid  having  on  its  base  the  engrav¬ 
ing  of  the  best  period  described,  PI.  VIII,  19). 

Facing  busts  of  Jupiter  Serapis  with  the  modius  on  his 
head  and  of  Isis  with  the  lotos  flower  on  hers.  Between 
them  is  a  faintly  engraved  object,  apparently  an  altar  with  a 
flame. 

10.  Carnelian,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  99,103). 

Three-quarters  figure  of  a  young  Triton  with  a  Nereid 
seated  on  his  back,  their  garments  about  their  thighs.  In 
the  water  beside  them  are  a  Cupid  and  a  dolphin.  The  in¬ 
scription,  YAAOY,  is  considered  a  modern  forgery  of  the  sig¬ 
nature  of  Hyllos. 

11.  Carnelian,  from  Kume,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York 

(King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  75). 

A  serpent-legged  Earth-giant,  with  a  sword  in  one  hand 
and  a  lion’s  skin,  which  he  uses  for  a  buckler,  in  the  other. 

12.  Carnelian,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  99,102). 

Hermes,  nude  save  for  the  cloak  hanging  from  his  shoul¬ 
ders,  playing  the  lyre.  His  petasos  also  hangs  on  his  back, 
and  his  feet  are  winged.  Fine  Augustan  work. 

13.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6966). 

Bust  of  the  youthful,  unbearded  Hercules  with  lion’s  skin 
on  his  head.  Type  of  the  coins  of  Alexander. 


362 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


PLATE  XXIII 

Gr^co-Roman  Gems  of  the  Early  Empire  ( continued ) 

(These  are  all  ring-stones.) 

1.  Dark  sard,  slightly  convex,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York 

(King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  73). 

Either  Cybele  or  Syria  Dea,  probably  the  former,  though 
King  has  catalogued  it  as  a  copy  of  the  famous  statue  of 
the  Syria  Dea  of  Emesa  described  by  Lucian.  The  goddess 
is  shown  full-face,  wearing  the  crown  of  turrets,  draped,  and 
seated  on  a  throne  which  rests  on  the  haunches  of  lions.  She 
holds  a  tympanum  (?)  in  one  hand  and  a  bunch  of  wheat 
ears  in  the  other.  Work,  probably,  of  not  earlier  than  100 
A.  D.,  and,  possibly,  considerably  later. 

2.  Brownish  variegated  jasper  (slightly  chipped). 

Ceres,  fully  draped,  seated  on  a  throne  without  a  back 
and  holding  out  wheat  ears  in  her  hand  over  what  seems  like 
a  small  conical  altar  with  horns.  Probably  not  earlier  work 
than  of  100  A.  D. 

3.  Convex  carnelian,  in  British  Museum  (Catal.  No.  722). 

Apollo,  nude,  leaning  on  a  tree  up  which  a  lizard  crawls. 
Copied  from  the  Apollo  Sauroktonos  of  Praxiteles. 

4.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  2649). 

Apollo,  nude,  with  fillet-bound  hair,  his  bow  in  one 
hand,  a  fawn  in  the  other.  Taken  from  the  archaic  statue  of 
Kanachos  as  shown  on  the  Milesian  coinage. 

5.  Glass-paste  imitating  a  brown  sard. 

Dionysos,  beardless,  seated  on  a  throne,  his  garment 
about  his  hips  and  legs,  and  holding  a  thyrsos.  Before  him 
is  a  panther. 

6.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6762). 

Aphrodite,  in  full-front,  nude,  holding  her  long  tresses 
in  her  hands.  The  type  is  of  the  Anadyomene  and  the 
work  is  evidently  taken  from  a  statue  of  about  Alexander’s 
time. 

7.  Carnelian  (slightly  chipped),  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

6742). 

Artemis  fully  draped  and  running,  her  bow  in  one  hand, 
a  torch  in  the  other,  and  her  quiver  on  her  back.  The  work 
shows  archaic  influence  and  suggests  the  Artemis  Soteira 
type. 


GR2EC0-R0MAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE  363 


8.  Carnelian,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Cupid  stringing  his  bow.  Beneath  are  two  arrows. 
Taken  from  some  Lysippean  statue  type. 

9.  Convex  plasma,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  2313). 

A  good  genius  with  mantle  about  hips  and  legs.  In 
one  hand  is  a  patera,  in  the  other  a  cornucopia  ending  in  a 
goat’s  head.  Statue  type. 

10.  Nicolo,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  67G4). 

Aphrodite,  nude,  a  spear  leaning  against  her  shoulder, 
and  a  helmet  in  one  hand,  the  other  raised  to  her  head,  in  the 
attitude  of  the  Diadumenos,  with  the  elbow  resting  on 
the  shield.  Taken  from  some  statue  type  of  Alexander’s 
time. 

11.  Chalcedony,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6714). 

Jupiter,  nude  and  beardless,  a  thunderbolt  in  one  hand,  a 
sceptre  in  the  other.  Taken,  certainly,  from  some  statue 
type,  perhaps  of  the  beardless  Jupiter  of  Anxur. 

12.  Convex  chalcedony,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  2610). 

Jupiter,  bearded  and  nude  save  for  a  mantle  over  his 
arm.  In  one  hand  he  holds  a  thunderbolt,  in  the  other  his 
sceptre.  At  his  feet  is  an  eagle.  A  statue  type  similar  to 
that  of  the  Capitoline  Jupiter  on  the  medals  of  Trajan  and 
Hadrian. 

13.  Red  jasper,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8389). 

Jupiter  enthroned,  his  mantle  about  his  legs  and  grasp¬ 
ing  by  the  hair  a  suppliant  serpent-legged  Earth-giant  at 
whom  he  is  about  to  launch  the  thunderbolt.  Behind  the 
giant  is  a  column  surmounted  by  a  winged  Victory  with 
wreath  upon  whose  head  an  eagle  perches.  Work,  probably, 
of  the  second  century  A.  D. 

14.  Nicolo,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6718). 

Hermes,  nude,  leaning  on  a  low  column,  his  caduceus  in 
one  hand.  From  some  statue  of  the  school  of  Polykleitos. 

15.  Nicolo,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6719). 

Hermes,  in  cloak  and  petasos,  his  caduceus  in  his  hand. 
Before  him  goes  a  ram.  Statue  type. 

16.  Convex  plasma,  from  Pompeii  (?). 

Hermes,  nude  but  for  a  scarf  over  his  arm.  In  one  hand 
he  holds  the  caduceus,  in  the  other  a  purse.  At  his  feet  is  a 
cock.  Statue  type. 

17.  Convex  plasma,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New 

York. 


364 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


Syria  Dea,  fully  draped,  enthroned  between  lions,  holding 
a  patera  in  her  hand,  and  wearing  the  lotos  flower  of  Isis  on 
her  head. 

18.  Carnelian,  from  Nola. 

Isis,  fully  draped,  her  lotos  flower  on  her  head,  her  sys- 
trum  in  one  hand,  and  a  basket  in  the  other. 

19.  Convex  chalcedony,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New 

York. 

Jupiter  enthroned,  his  mantle  about  his  hips  and 
legs.  One  hand  rests  on  a  long  sceptre,  the  other 
holds  a  patera.  At  his  feet  is  an  eagle.  Conventional 
statue  type. 

20.  Carnelian. 

Neptune,  nude  and  bearded,  one  hand  resting  on  his 
trident,  the  other  holding  a  dolphin.  Statue  type. 

21.  Red  jasper. 

Venus  Victrix,  her  mantle  about  her  legs,  leaning  on  a 
low  column  against  the  base  of  which  rests  a  shield.  She 
holds  a  helmet  in  one  hand  and  a  spear  in  the  other.  A 
statue  type  very  popular  on  gems  and,  probably,  the  same  as 
that  worn  on  the  signet  of  Julius  Caesar. 

22.  Carnelian. 

Mars  Gradivus,  advancing  with  spear  in  hand  and  a  pole 
bearing  a  trophy  over  his  shoulder. 

23.  Convex  brownish  red  sard. 

Mars  Ultor,  in  full  panoply  with  military  cloak  over  his 
shoulders,  one  hand  resting  on  his  spear,  the  other  on  his 
shield  beside  him.  Statue  type.  Second  century  work. 

24.  Carnelian. 

Mars  Navalis,  nude,  his  foot  resting  on  the  prow  of  a 
ship.  His  shield  is  on  his  arm  and  he  holds  a  dart  in  the 
same  hand ;  in  the  other  is  a  winged  Victory.  The  type  dates 
from  the  battle  of  Actium. 

25.  Carnelian  (slightly  chipped). 

Minerva,  fully  draped,  wearing  a  helmet,  her  shield  be¬ 
side  her  and  one  hand  resting  on  her  spear.  The  other 
holds  a  patera  over  a  flaming  altar.  Statue  type. 

26.  Carnelian  (slightly  chipped). 

Diana  of  Ephesos  with  close  reticulated  garment  coming 
below  the  knees.  The  hands  reach  out  horizontally  from  her 
sides  toward  the  two  conventional  supports,  and,  below,  the 
foreparts  of  two  stags  issue  from  either  side,  their  heads 


GRAECO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE  365 


turned  upward  as  if  seeking  protection.  The  break  in  the 
stone  obscures  the  form  of  the  crown.  Second  century  work. 

27.  Sardonyx,  in  the  collection  of  Dr.  Herschel  Parker,  New  York. 

Diana  of  the  Aventine,  closely  draped  to  the  feet,  holding 
wheat  ears  in  one  hand,  the  other  raised.  From  below  issue 
the  foreparts  of  cows. 

PLATE  XXIV 

GmECO-RoMAN  Gems  of  the  Early  Empire  ( continued ) 

(These  are  all  ring-stones.) 

1.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6790). 

Cupid,  with  a  stick,  making  two  cocks  fight.  Nearby 
stands  an  ithyphallic  Herm  with  a  palm-branch.  Squarish 
stone  with  cable  border.  This  gem  may  be  Hellenistic  work. 
Neither  the  subject  nor  the  technique  give  much  aid  in  plac¬ 
ing  it. 

2.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6786). 

Cupid,  with  a  thyrsos,  driving  a  chariot  drawn  by  a  goat 
and  a  lion.  May  be  Hellenistic  work. 

3.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6809). 

Cupid  mounted  on  a  bear  which  seems  to  be  falling  over 
backwards,  as  a  dog  attacks  it.  Representation  of  rocks 
suggests  a  landscape.  May  be  Hellenistic  wTork. 

4.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6918). 

Two  nude  boys  carrying  a  third  by  his  arms  and  feet. 
Beneath  them  lies  a  ball.  May  be  Hellenistic  work. 

5.  Sard,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

Bearded  and  wreathed  head  and  upper  body  of  Poseidon, 
nude  save  for  a  scarf  over  one  shoulder.  Behind  him  is  a 
trident  of  peculiar  shape  in  that  it  has  two  long  prongs 
branching  out  below  the  three.  The  engraving,  especially  of 
the  hair,  shows  the  influence  of  the  severe  Greek  style. 

6.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6773). 

Cupid,  with  his  legs  chained,  leaning,  mournful,  on  his 
extinguished  torch.  A  symbol  of  dead  love.  Inscription, 
I LVS ;  the  owmer’s  name. 

7.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6794). 

Two  Cupids  boxing,  their  hands  armed  with  the  cestus. 
One  has  been  knocked  down  and  hurt.  May  be  Hellenistic 
work. 


366 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


8.  Carnelian  (chipped),  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6778). 

A  weeping  Cupid  seated  on  rocks  with  his  foot  caught  in 
a  trap.  Before  him  is  another  Cupid  with  a  palm-branch. 

9.  Red  jasper. 

Thanatos,  with  crossed  legs,  leaning  on  an  extinguished 
torch. 

10.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6766). 

Aphrodite,  nude  save  for  a  scarf  falling  over  one  arm 
and  leg,  leaning  on  a  bearded  Herm  statue  at  whose  base  arms 
are  heaped.  Beside  and  beneath  her  are  the  attributes  of 
Eros:  bow,  quiver,  and  torch.  Probably  taken  from  some 
statue  type  of  Alexander’s  time. 

11.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  3006). 

Aphrodite  Anadyomene  standing  in  a  representation  of 
her  temple,  with  steps,  two  fluted  columns,  and  a  gable  roof 
with  a  crescent  in  the  pediment. 

12.  Convex  plasma,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  2393). 

Venus  Victrix,  a  mantle  about  her  legs,  leaning  on  a  low 
column  against  which  rests  a  shield  and  holding  a  dart  and 
a  helmet.  Before  her  is  a  Cupid  holding  up  a  mirror  (?). 
A  similar  gem  in  Vienna  bears  the  name  of  the  goddess  in 
both  Greek  and  Latin. 

13.  Red  jasper,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8392). 

Apollo,  with  mantle  about  his  legs  and  his  lyre  in  his 
hand,  regarding  Marsyas,  who  is  hanging  by  his  bound  hands 
on  a  tree.  Before  the  god  kneels  Olympos,  the  satyr’s  pupil, 
begging  for  mercy. 

14.  Convex  plasma. 

Victory,  winged  and  fully  draped,  with  a  palm-branch 
over  her  shoulder  and  a  wreath  in  her  hand. 

15.  Nicolo. 

Victory,  winged,  her  mantle  about  her  legs,  one  foot 
raised  on  a  rock  and  resting  a  shield  on  her  knee. 

16.  Chalcedony,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6746). 

A  genius,  bearded  and  nude  save  for  a  scarf  over  his 
arm,  holding  a  cornucopia  and  a  patera.  A  rather  overdone 
imitation  of  the  archaic  style. 

17.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  815). 

A  woman,  in  a  long  tunic,  seated  and  asleep.  Behind 
her  stands  Hypnos,  nude,  bearded,  and  with  large  wings. 
Cable  border.  This  gem  must  be  dated  very  early  in  the 
Augustan  period  and  may  even  belong  to  the  group  of  the 


GR^CO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE  367 


combination  epoch  when  the  early  Roman  styles  under  Etrus¬ 
can  and  Hellenistic  influence  were  coming  together. 

18.  Chalcedony,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6435). 

Artemis,  nude,  surprised  at  the  bath  by  Aktaion,  whose 
head,  upon  which  the  stag’s  horns  are  sprouting,  peers  over 
a  rock  upon  which  are  her  mantle,  bow,  and  quiver.  A  water 
urn  stands  at  its  base  and  a  stag’s  head  hangs  above.  Char¬ 
acteristic  Hellenistic  work  and  may  fall  with  that  period. 

19.  Slightly  convex  brownish-red  sard. 

iEsculapius,  a  cloak  over  one  shoulder  and  about  his  hips. 
Before  him  stands  Hygeia,  full  draped.  He  holds  his  staff 
with  the  serpent  twining  around  it,  and  she,  her  serpent  and 
cup. 

20.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6747). 

Triptolemos,  nude  save  for  the  cloak  over  his  arm.  In 
one  hand  he  holds  wheat  ears  and  a  poppy ;  the  other  grasps 
the  handle  of  a  plough. 

21.  Nicolo,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8185). 

Bonus  Eventus,  nude,  a  wheat  ear  in  one  hand.  The 
other  holds  a  patera  over  a  flaming  altar. 

22.  Brownish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6857). 

Poseidon,  nude  and  bearded,  his  trident  in  his  hand, 
bearing  away  over  the  water,  in  his  four-horse  chariot,  a  fully 
draped  maiden  (Amymone?).  In  the  water  below  sports  a 
bearded  Triton. 


PLATE  XXV 

Gr^co-Roman  Gems  of  the  Early  Empire  ( continued ) 

(These  are  all  ring-stones.) 

1.  Dark  brownish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6491). 

Ajax,  bearded  and  nude  save  for  a  mantle  about  his  hips, 
seated,  with  drawn  sword,  resting  his  head  on  his  hand. 
Around  him  are  the  heads  of  animals,  an  ox  and  a  ram, 
which  he  has  torn  to  pieces  in  his  madness.  Probably  from 
the  famous  painting  by  Timomachos. 

2.  Carnelian  (somewhat  calcined) . 

A  Cupid  riding  two  hippocamps. 

3.  Carnelian  of  two  shades,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York 

(King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  101). 


368 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


Roma,  fully  draped,  seated  with  spear  and  shield  before  a 
tree  at  the  foot  of  which  the  wolf  suckles  Romulus  and  Re¬ 
mus.  On  the  other  side  stands  the  shepherd,  Faustulus,  in 
tunic  and  goat-skin  cloak.  Similar  to  the  reverse  of  a  de¬ 
narius  of  the  Gens  Pompeia  and,  probably,  the  signet  of  some 
member  of  that  family. 

4.  Convex  sardonyx  of  three  layers,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New 

York  (King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  214). 

Nemesis,  winged  and  fully  draped,  a  branch  of  ash  in  her 
hand  and  plucking  the  tunic  from  her  breast  with  the  bent 
arm  gesture  peculiar  to  her. 

5.  Blackish  sard,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7650). 

Hypnos,  nude,  a  winged  cap  on  his  head,  an  inverted 
horn  in  one  hand  and  two  poppy-stalks  in  the  other.  Statue 
type,  taken,  probably,  from  either  Skopas  or  Myron. 

6.  Nicolo,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8199). 

A  winged  female  figure,  nude  save  for  a  scarf  over  one 
arm,  with  legs  crossed,  leaning  on  a  sort  of  double-thyrsos 
with  a  pine-cone  at  each  end.  At  her  feet  is  a  goose  or  swan. 
Dr.  Furtwiingler,  in  whose  Die  Antiken  Gemmen  this  gem  ap¬ 
pears  (PI.  XLIII,  52),  discusses  it  at  length  and  seems  in¬ 
clined  to  regard  it  as  a  copy  of  the  famous  Skopas  statue  of 
Pothos.  I  cannot  understand  this  attribution  which,  as  its 
base,  holds  the  figure  to  be  masculine,  a  wholly  untenable  as¬ 
sumption.  I  have  examined  it  very  carefully  and,  while  there 
may  be  some  ground  for  a  bi-sexual  diagnosis,  the  female  ele¬ 
ment  is  certainly  preponderant.  His  conclusion  that  its  ref¬ 
erence  is  to  the  Dionysiac  or  Aphroditic  cults  is  better  sub¬ 
stantiated  by  the  thyrsos  and  goose  (?),  but,  if  we  take  the 
figure  as  meant  to  be  bi-sexual,  a  most  interesting  and  much 
more  plausible  attribution  would  name  it  an  Orphic  Eros  Pro- 
togonos.  The  thyrsos  would  then  symbolize  the  Dionysiac 
side  of  Orphism  and  a  swan,  the  myth  of  Leda,  which  has  a 
distinctly  Orphic  flavor. 

7.  Amethyst,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6865). 

Hercules,  nude  and  beardless,  his  club  in  one  hand,  in 
the  other  the  manlike  head  of  the  bull,  Acheloos.  Statuesque 
motive  from  pre-Lysippean  times. 

8.  Carnelian,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New  York. 

Ulysses,  with  pointed  cap  and  cloak  over  one  shoulder 
and  around  his  hips,  leaning  on  his  staff. 

9.  Sardonyx  of  two  layers. 


GR2EC0-R0MAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE  369 


Fortuna,  fully  draped,  with  cornucopia  and  holding  in 
her  hand  a  winged  Victory  with  wreath  and  palm-branch. 
Inscription,  M  ;  the  owner’s  initial. 

10.  Convex  plasma,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  2443). 

Spes,  fully  draped,  drawing  out  her  garment  with  one 
hand  and  holding  a  flower  in  the  other.  Taken,  undoubtedly, 
from  an  archaic  Roman  statue. 

11.  Nicolo,  in  British  Museum  (Catal  No.  1817). 

A  nude  athlete  holding  a  discus,  with  both  hands  raised 
above  his  head.  Statuesque  motive,  probably  from  some 
work  of  Myron. 

12.  Convex  plasma,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal  No.  2488). 

A  nude  athlete  with  spear  over  his  shoulder.  Type  of 
the  Doryphoros  of  Polycleitos. 

13.  Convex  plasma,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  2491). 

A  nude  athlete,  crowned,  a  discus  in  one  hand  and  a  palm- 
branch  in  the  other,  standing  near  a  Herm  statue.  Perhaps 
copied  from  a  work  of  Eupompos. 

14.  Slightly  convex  banded  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No. 

6882). 

Achilleus,  nude,  seated,  mournful,  on  a  stool,  his  arm 
resting  on  his  shield  which  bears  the  device  of  a  sea-horse. 
His  sword  and  helmet  hang  on  a  pillar  near  him.  Probably 
taken  from  some  painting. 

15.  Nicolo,  in  collection  of  Mrs.  Henry  Draper,  New  York. 

A  centaur  with  a  thyrsos  over  one  shoulder  and  carry¬ 
ing  a  large  krater  on  the  other. 

16.  Banded  agate,  owner  unknown. 

iEquitas,  fully  draped,  with  scales  in  one  hand  and  cor¬ 
nucopia  in  the  other. 

17.  Carnelian. 

Three  nude  heroes  in  helmets,  one  supporting  a  second 
who  also  bears  his  shield  and  holds  out  one  leg  toward  the 
third,  wTho  seems  to  be  ministering  to  him.  Undoubtedly  Di- 
omedes  or  Odysseus  bringing  Philoktetes  to  Machaon  to  be 
cured  of  his  wound.  Typical  picture  of  the  Etruscan-Roman 
period,  such  as  was  often  copied  in  this  epoch  where  the  lack 
of  border  and  the  closed  form  of  the  P  seem  to  place  it. 
Inscription,  P  Q  ;  the  owner’s  initials. 

18.  Carnelian. 

Draped  female  figure,  probably  Abundantia,  with  a  cor¬ 
nucopia,  seated  and  holding  a  patera  over  a  flaming  altar. 


370 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


Inscription,  EAP,  ligatured;  the  owner’s  name  abbreviated. 
Probably  second  century  work. 

19.  Nicolo,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8236). 

Hercules  wrestling  with  Antaios,  both  of  them  nude 
and  bearded.  Probably  taken  from  some  statue  or  painting 
of  Alexander’s  time. 

20.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7606). 

A  nude  hero,  with  helmet,  shield,  and  spear,  dragging 
away  by  the  hair  a  fully  draped  woman.  Doubtless  Ajax 
and  Kassandra.  Probably  second  century  work. 

21.  Slightly  convex  red  jasper,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York 

(King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  227). 

Personification  of  some  city,  fully  draped  and  wearing 
the  mural  crown,  enthroned  on  the  shoulders  of  a  river- 
god  (King  suggests  Antioch  on  the  shoulders  of  the  River 
Orontes).  On  one  side  stands  Fortuna  with  rudder  and  a 
modius  on  her  head ;  on  the  other,  not  Victory,  as  King  says, 
but  the  city’s  founder  (if  Antioch,  Seleukos),  wearing  a 
corselet  and  with  his  sword  under  his  arm,  is  crowning  her 
with  a  wreath.  Probably  second  century  work. 

22.  Slightly  convex  amethyst,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  3411). 

Decorated  vase  showing  two  handles  above  and  one  in 
front. 

23.  Blackish  sard  with  two  white  stripes,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal. 

No.  7115). 

Kantharos  with  two  high  handles  decorated  with  masks 
and  with  a  two-horse  chariot  on  the  bowl. 


PLATE  XXVI 

Gr;eco-Roman  Gems  of  the  Early  Empire  ( continued ) 
(These  are  all  ring-stones.) 

1.  Carnelian. 

A  war-galley  containing  two  armed  men. 

2.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7096). 

War-galley  with  cock’s  head  for  prow  and  cock’s  tail 
at  the  stern.  Above  floats  a  butterfly.  A  talisman  or  amulet. 

3.  Carnelian. 

A  Triton  with  a  rudder  over  his  shoulder  and  holding  a 
dolphin  in  his  hand. 


GRiECO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE  371 


4.  Carnelian. 

A  ram’s  head  with  an  ear  of  wheat  in  its  mouth.  In¬ 
scription,  HORESTI;  the  owner’s  name.  A  talisman  or 
amulet.  The  cutting  shows  admirably  what  is  known  as  the 
meplat  style,  where  the  whole  design  is  sunk  in  the  stone. 

5.  Carnelian. 

A  human  figure  in  tunic  and  cloak  which  hangs  down 
over  one  shoulder  and  having  the  head  of  an  ass  (  ?)  but  with 
short  round  ears.  He  carries  a  palm-branch  and  a  caduceus, 
such  as  were  borne  by  the  jackal-headed  Anubis  in  the  Isiac 
procession  as  described  in  Book  XI  of  The  Golden  Ass  of 
Apuleius.  In  the  field,  also,  is  the  systrum  of  Isis,  but  the 
head  of  this  figure,  with  its  short,  round  ears  and  thick 
muzzle,  cannot  be  meant  for  that  of  a  jackal  or  dog.  The 
ass,  hippopotamus,  and  several  other  animals  were  sacred  to 
Set  or  Tvphon,  and  it  may  be  that  some  worshipper  of  that 
god  strove  to  combine  his  influence  with  that  of  Anubis,  in 
the  period  of  the  popularity  of  Eastern  and  Egyptian  cults  in 
Rome.  The  subject,  joined  with  the  excellent  work,  seems  to 
place  the  gem  at  the  time  of  the  Hadrianic  revival  of  the  art. 

6.  Nicolo,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7084). 

A  cock,  sacred  to  Hermes,  having  a  human  head  with  the 
god’s  winged  petasos  and  carrying  his  caduceus  over  its  shoul¬ 
der.  A  talisman  or  amulet. 

7.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7083). 

A  cock  with  an  ass’s  head.  A  talisman  or  amulet. 

8.  Red  jasper,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7090). 

The  owl  of  Athena  having  the  helmeted  head  of  the  god¬ 
dess  instead  of  its  own  and  carrying  her  spear  over  its  shoul¬ 
der.  A  talisman  or  amulet. 

9.  Nicolo,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York  (King  Coll.,  Catal. 

No.  173). 

Cupid,  with  a  torch,  peering  into  an  urn  out  of  which  a 
skeleton  is  falling  and  from  which  a  palm-branch  springs. 
It  symbolizes,  apparently,  the  victory  of  love  over  death. 

10.  Bluish  green  transparent  stone,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New 
York  (King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  53). 

A  nude,  bi  sexual  figure,  in  a  half  squatting  attitude  with 
spread  legs.  On  the  ground  is  a  snail  upon  which  a  butterfly 
perches.  Some  Oriental  cult,  the  identification  of  which  is 
uncertain,  is  symbolized  by  this  picture.  King  calls  it  “  The 
Mother  of  Creation.” 


372 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


11.  Carnelian. 

Pegasos. 

12.  Convex  brownish  sard,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York 

(King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  141). 

A  figure  having  the  head  of  a  goat  and  the  body  and  tail 
of  a  scorpion,  bearing  a  legionary  standard.  According  to 
Manilius,  “  The  warlike  scorpion  follows  Mars,”  while,  as 
may  be  found  in  my  text,  a  number  of  the  legions  bore 
Capricorn  for  a  sign,  doubtless  in  honor  of  Augustus.  The 
gem  may  be  placed  as  the  signet  of  an  officer  of  one  of  these, 
who  sought  to  invoke  the  astrological  influence  of  both  signs. 

13.  Red  jasper,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7089). 

A  helmeted  sphinx,  her  tail  ending  in  a  serpent’s  head, 
with  one  paw  on  a  shield  against  which  rests  a  spear.  Be¬ 
hind  her  is  a  bush.  A  talisman  or  amulet  to  invoke  the  aid 
of  Athena. 

14.  Light,  translucent  carnelian,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty, 

New  York. 

A  peacock  perching  on  a  pitcher  with  a  high  handle. 

15.  Convex  eye-agate. 

Capricornus  bearing  a  palm-branch.  Beneath  is  a  ball, 
perhaps  the  celestial  globe.  An  astrological  talisman  which 
may  be  based  on  the  verse  of  Manilius : 

“  Thou,  for  thy  rule,  O  Capricorn !  hast  won 
All  that  extends  beneath  the  setting  sun.” 

16.  Nicolo,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7079). 

A  scorpion  gripping  a  fly  by  the  head.  On  either  side  an 
ant,  sacred  to  Ceres,  is  carrying  a  grain  of  wheat.  Below  are 
two  stars  and,  above,  a  half-moon.  A  talisman  or  amulet. 

17.  Convex  amethyst  (calcined). 

Europe  seated  on  the  Zeus-bull. 

18.  Convex  brown  paste,  in  imitation  of  a  sard. 

Selene  (or  Lucina),  draped,  with  a  crescent  on  her  head 
and  holding  a  torch,  driving  a  two-horse  chariot. 

19.  Convex  plasma,  in  Hermitage  Museum,  St.  Petersburg. 

A  boar  with  its  hind  feet  raised  on  a  rock  from  around 
which  a  dog  assails  it.  The  design  shows  the  Hellenistic  taste 
for  oblique,  foreshortened  views  of  animals,  and  the  gem  may 
belong  to  that  epoch. 

20.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7120). 

A  signet  ring  circling  a  hare.  On  either  side  are  wheat 
ears  above  one  of  which  floats  a  butterfly.  Across  the  bezel 


\ 


GRiECO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE  373 


a  Cupid  drives  a  chariot  to  which  two  cocks  are  joked.  Be¬ 
neath  is  a  bundle  of  rods  (the  fasces?).  Inscription, 
M  VIRRI;  the  owner’s  name.  A  talisman  or  amulet. 

21.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7048). 

A  cow,  under  a  tree,  giving  suck  to  her  calf.  The  Hel¬ 
lenistic  taste  for  foreshortening  is  even  more  pronounced  here 
than  in  No.  19  above. 

22.  Convex  amethyst. 

A  horse  writh  a  wreath  in  its  mouth  and  a  palm-branch 
at  its  feet.  Some  successful  contestant  in  the  circus,  taken 
as  a  signet  by  its  owner  or  backer. 

23.  Carnelian  (slightly  chipped),  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty, 

New  York. 

A  herd  of  seven  deer. 

24.  Black  jasper. 

A  sow.  The  color  of  the  stone  is  appropriate  to  the 
Chthonian  character  of  the  sow  as  a  sacrificial  animal. 

25.  Carnelian  (slightly  chipped),  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty, 

New  York. 

A  running  boar  struck  by  an  arrow  and  attacked  by  a 
dog.  The  identical  picture  is  found  on  the  denarii  of  the  gens, 
Hosidia,  and  the  gem  was  probably  the  signet  of  some  mem¬ 
ber  of  that  family. 

26.  Convex  amethyst. 

A  grasshopper  on  a  stalk  of  wheat  nibbling  at  the 
grain. 

27.  Red  jasper,  in  collection  of  Dr.  Raley  H.  Bell,  New  York. 

A  crane  carrying  a  cornu  or  nearly  circular  trumpet  and 
a  spear. 

28.  Carnelian. 

A  kalathos  with  a  lamb  capering  on  it  and  holding  a 
wheat  ear  in  its  mouth.  On  one  side  is  a  cornucopia,  on  the 
other,  a  dolphin.  A  talisman  or  amulet. 

29.  Glass  paste  in  imitation  of  a  carnelian,  from  Campania. 

A  dwarf  or  gnome,  in  a  pointed  cap  and  a  cloak,  mounted 
on  a  goatfish,  perhaps  one  of  the  Daktyloi.  This  gem  may 
date  much  earlier  and  be  work  of  republican  times  under 
Hellenistic  influence. 

30.  Nicolo,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New  York. 

A  ram,  sacred  to  Hermes  as  the  protector  of  flocks,  with 
two  wheat  stalks  before  it  and  carrying  in  its  mouth  the 
caduceus  of  the  god.  A  talisman  or  amulet. 


374 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


PLATE  XXVII 

Graeco-Roman  Gems  of  the  Early  Empire  ( concluded ) 

(These  are  all  ring-stones,) 

1.  Black  jasper. 

A  thunderbolt. 

2.  Slightly  convex  yellow  chalcedony,  in  collection  of  Prof. 

Hersehel  Parker,  New  York. 

The  forepart  of  a  stag  issuing  from  a  shell.  Inscription, 
LPF,  the  owner’s  initials. 

3.  Carnelian,  with  whitish  variations,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney 

Beatty,  New  York. 

A  peculiarly  complicated  gryllus;  the  body,  a  ram’s  head 
with  a  Seilenos  mask  for  the  breast,  the  head,  that  of  a  goat, 
the  legs,  a  bird’s,  and  the  tail,  which  issues  from  the  ram’s 
mouth,  made  up  of  a  wheat  ear,  a  dolphin’s  tail,  a  peacock’s 
head,  and  two  flowers.  The  cutting  shows  the  meplat  style, 
where  the  whole  design  is  sunk  in  the  stone.  A  talisman  or 
amulet. 

4.  Red  jasper,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New  YTork. 

Gryllus  made  up  of  a  Seilenos  mask  and  ram’s  head 
body,  bird’s  legs,  a  horse’s  head,  and  a  wheat  ear  for  a  tail. 
It  carries  a  cornucopia  and  a  palm-branch.  A  talisman  or 
amulet. 

5.  Nicolo,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Gatal.  No.  8348). 

Forepart  of  an  elephant  carrying  a  torch  in  his  trunk 
and  issuing  from  a  shell.  A  talisman  or  amulet. 

6.  Red  jasper,  in  collection  of  H.  L.  Pangborn,  New  York. 

An  eagle,  with  a  wreath  in  its  bill,  between  two  legionary 
standards.  Evidently  the  signet  of  some  legionary  officer. 
Certain  scratches  on  the  surface  of  the  gem  that  look  like 
numerals  and  seem  to  have  been  made  by  a  later  hand  may 
have  been  an  attempt  by  the  owner  to  add  the  number  of  his 
legion.  Probably  second  century  work. 

7.  Convex  sardonyx. 

A  crab  with  a  star  between  its  claws.  Inscription, 
BPETTIQN  (Brettion).  The  crab  is  an  emblem  on  the 
coins  of  Bruttium,  and  the  gem  is  evidently  a  signet  of  some 
one  of  the  gens,  Brettia,  who,  doubtless,  drew  their  origin 
from  that  part  of  Italy.  (See  A.  Sanbon’s  essay  in  Corolla 
Numismatiea,  published  in  honor  of  Barclay  V.  Head,  citing 
a  gem  inscribed,  E N  N  A ! LU N .) 


GRAECO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE  375 


8.  Mixed  red  and  yellow  jasper. 

Scorpio  holding  Libra  in  its  claws.  Astrological  device 
aimed  to  gain  for  the  wearer  the  influence  of  both  signs. 

9.  Nicolo,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New  York. 

A  very  crude  figure,  perhaps  Cupid,  perhaps  a  mouse, 
driving  a  chariot  to  which  a  cock  is  hitched.  Probably 
second  century  work  and  may  belong  to  the  later 
Empire. 

10.  Dark  red  carnelian. 

A  man  and  woman,  fully  draped,  with  clasped  hands  and 
holding  a  stalk  of  wheat.  A  marriage  ring-stone,  emblematic 
of  the  ceremony  of  the  confarreatio. 


Roman  Gems  of  the  Latter  Half  of  the  Second  Century 

(These,  vyith  the  exception  of  the  last  on  the  plate,  are  all  ring- 

stones.) 

11.  Convex  carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7572). 

Hercules,  unbearded  and  with  crude  suggestions  of  float¬ 
ing  drapery,  carrying  the  Erymanthian  Boar  on  his  shoulder. 
Before  him  is  the  jar  in  which  Eurystheus  hid  himself  in 
fright.  The  work  is  characteristic  of  the  second  half  of  the 
second  century. 

12.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7588). 

Two  pigmies,  with  spears  and  shields,  in  battle  with  two 
cranes.  Characteristic  wTork  of  second  half  of  the  second 
century. 

13.  Carnelian  (slightly  calcined),  from  near  Damascus. 

A  horse  with  a  palm-branch  in  its  mouth,  symbolic  of 
victory.  Inscription,  ATP,  probably  an  abbreviation  of  the 
horse’s  name,  Arpvrcbvr}  (The  Unwearied),  a  title  of  Athena. 
Mrpza'%ro?(Unconquered)/l4r/3f(>To?  (Fearless),  and  ArpevS 
are  also  possible  names. 

14.  Heliotrope,  in  collection  of  Thos.  E.  H.  Curtis,  Plainfield,  N.  J. 

Helios,  with  crown  of  rays,  driving  his  four-horse  chariot. 
Characteristic  work  of  latter  part  of  the  second  century.  The 
subject  is  common  and  the  stone  also  characteristic. 

15.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7575). 

Bellerophon,  mounted  on  Pegasos,  hovering  over  the 
Chimaira,  at  which  he  aims  his  spear.  This  gem  is  much 
better  work  than  the  four  preceding  and  may  date  from  the 
early  part  of  the  second  or,  even,  from  the  first  century.  The 


376 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


subject  was  probably  the  device  on  the  signet  of  Pallas,  the 
freedman  of  Claudius.  (See  Chap.  Ill  of  Part  III,  above.) 

16.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7675). 

A  muse,  with  drapery  around  her  hips  and  legs,  seated  in 
a  chair  before  an  ithyphallic  Priapos  who  stands  on  a  low 
column,  and  holds  a  horned  mask  in  his  hand.  Character¬ 
istic  work  of  latter  part  of  the  second  century. 

17.  Red  jasper,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  6855). 

Hercules,  bearded,  with  floating  lion’s  skin  and  club  over 
his  shoulder,  leading  Cerberus.  Before  him  is  a  warrior  in 
corselet,  with  sword  and  spear  and  wearing  a  crown,  doubt¬ 
less  one  of  the  later  emperors,  dragging  by  the  hair  a  bar¬ 
barian  captive  with  a  Phrygian  cap.  In  the  middle  is  an 
eagle  with  a  wreath  in  its  beak  and,  above,  a  star  and  a  half¬ 
moon.  Characteristic  subject  and  style  of  the  later  Empire. 

18.  Convex  carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  3033). 

Eros  binding  the  wounded  foot  of  a  lion.  Behind  the  lat¬ 
ter  is  a  tree.  Crude  work  but  possibly  even  as  early  as  the 
first  century  A.  D. 

19.  Nicolo,  in  Bibliothbque  Nationale,  Paris  (Coll.  Chabouillet,  No. 

2096).  Too  large  for  a  ring-stone. 

One  of  the  later  emperors  (Commodus  or,  perhaps,  Mar¬ 
cus  Aurelius),  wearing  a  tunic  and  mounted  on  a  horse  with 
a  panther-skin  saddle-cloth,  is  casting  his  javelin  at  a  tiger. 
The  work  is  good  for  the  period ;  such  as  might  be  looked  for 
on  a  large,  ornamental  piece  worn  by  some  immediate  attend¬ 
ant  of  the  Emperor. 


PLATE  XXVIII 

Gems  of  the  Later  Empire  (contiwued) 

(These  are  ring-stones  except  when  otherwise  stated.) 

1.  Carnelian  (upper  part  restored  in  gold),  in  Berlin  Museum 

(Catal.  No.  2340). 

Portrait-head.  Work  of  the  second  century. 

2.  Chalcedony,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  2342). 

Portrait-busts  of  a  man  and  woman.  Work  of  the  third 
century. 

3.  Nicolo,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7011). 

Bust-portrait  of  Elagabalus  crowned  with  a  laurel 
wreath. 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


377 


4.  Banded  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  7012). 

Bust-portrait  of  an  emperor  of  the  third  century,  crowned 
with  a  laurel  wreath ;  probably  Balbinus. 

5.  Carnelian,  rather  large  for  a  ring-stone ;  unknown  owner. 

Portrait-bust  of  Philippus  the  elder,  his  wife,  Otacilia, 
and  their  son,  the  younger  Philippus.  Third  century  work. 

6.  Lapis  lazuli;  unknown  owner. 

Bust-portrait  of  one  of  the  later  emperors ;  perhaps  Con- 
stantius  II,  Gratianus,  or  Honorius.  Typical  example  of  the 
last  efforts  of  the  glyptic  art  in  the  fourth  century. 

7.  Carnelian,  rather  large  for  a  ring-stone;  unknown  owner. 

Bust-portrait  of  Decius.  Third  century  work. 

8.  Lapis  lazuli;  unknown  owner. 

Portrait-head  of  one  of  the  later  emperors  crowned  with 
a  laurel  wreath.  An  example  of  the  expiring  efforts  of 
glyptic  art. 

9.  Beryl,  formerly  among  the  Marlborough  gems. 

Bust-portrait  of  Julia  Domna,  wife  of  Septimius  Severus. 
Work  of  about  200  A.  D. 

10.  “Onyx”  (probably  chalcedony),  rather  large  for  a  ring-stone; 

presented  in  1825  by  the  Emperor  Francis  I  to  Pope  Leo  XII. 

Portrait-busts  of  a  Christian  family  of  the  latter  part  of 
the  third  century,  father,  mother,  and  daughter.  Inscription, 
1C  OEOC  {eh  Seo?),  ZOH  [8,001)),  and  EVTVXI  n AN X A P I  META 
THE  KVPIAC  BACIAICEHC  KAI  HAYAI N  AC  {EvtvXi  ndvXapi 
peToc  rr}S  HvpiaS  BaffiXiaffp?  uai  Tlavkiv a? :  at  once  a  family 
portrait  gallery,  a  confession  of  faith,  and  a  talismanic  invo¬ 
cation  of  good  luck. 

11.  Carnelian  (chipped). 

Portrait-bust  of  a  youth  crowned  with  a  laurel  wreath 
and  with  an  indistinguishable  object  over  his  shoulder.  Third 
century  work. 

12.  Carnelian,  with  whitish  striations,  from  Cattaro. 

Portrait-bust  of  a  woman.  Third  century  work. 

13.  Yellowish  carnelian. 

Two  masks,  back  to  back.  Probably  the  Janus  head. 
Second  or  third  century  work. 

14.  Carnelian. 

A  dog  running.  Inscription,  ATTICA  (Attisa)  ;  doubt¬ 
less  the  animal’s  name.  Probably  second  century  work. 

15.  Carnelian. 

An  eagle  on  an  altar  from  which  a  stalk  of  wheat  rises. 


378 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


16.  Carnelian. 

Clasped  hands  holding  a  eaduceus  and  two  stalks  of 
wheat.  Inscription,  KF;  the  initials  of  the  two  parties  to 
the  confarreatio. 

17.  Brownish-red  sard. 

Bacchus,  beardless  and  nude,  one  hand  resting  on  his 
thyrsus,  the  other  holding  a  pitcher.  Inscription,  TPO<MMI- 
UUNO,  the  owner’s  name  in  the  genitive  with  the  final  sigma 
left  out  for  lack  of  space. 

18.  Carnelian  (slightly  calcined). 

Athena,  one  hand  resting  on  her  shield  beside  which 
stands  her  spear,  the  other  bearing  a  winged  Victory. 

19.  Carnelian. 

Diana,  in  short  tunic  and  floating  scarf,  advancing,  hav¬ 
ing  just  loosed  the  arrow  from  her  bow.  Over  her  shoulder  is 
what  may  be  meant  for  a  spear,  and  at  her  feet  runs  a  hound. 
The  whole  is  an  example  of  the  crudest  kind  of  late  work, — 
merely  a  few  gougings  with  the  wheel. 

20.  Yellow  carnelian. 

Roma  or  some  “  City,”  draped  and  with  helmet  and  spear, 
writing  on  a  shield  which  rests  on  a  low  column. 

21.  Brownish-red  sard,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New 

York. 

Three  deities  in  a  row;  in  the  middle,  the  Olympian 
Jupiter  enthroned,  with  garment  about  his  legs,  his  eagle  at 
his  feet,  one  hand  holding  a  winged  Victory,  the  other  resting 
on  his  sceptre.  Before  him  stands  an  unidentified  female 
deity,  draped  and  holding  a  patera  over  an  altar;  behind  is 
Spes  holding  out  her  tunic  with  one  hand,  the  other  raised 
and  holding  a  bud.  Crude  work  of  the  late  second  or  third 
century. 

PLATE  XXIX 

Gems  of  the  Later  Empire  ( concluded ) 

(These  are  all  ring-stones  except  when  otherwise  stated.) 

1.  Carnelian,  in  the  collection  of  Prof.  Herschel  Parker,  New 

York. 

Castor  and  Pollux,  each  resting  on  his  spear,  and  nude 
save  for  a  mantle  thrown  over  his  arm.  A  crude  representa¬ 
tion  of  a  star  is  on  the  forehead  of  each.  Late  work  of  the 
cheapest  character,  probably  of  astronomical  purport. 

2.  Carnelian. 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


379 


A  peasant,  with  a  sheep’s  or  goat’s  skin  cloak,  reaping 
grain.  Very  crude,  late  work. 

3.  Carnelian. 

A  dog  pursuing  a  rabbit.  A  few  crude  gougings  of  the 
wheel. 

4.  Banded  agate  (calcined). 

A  goat-fish  (Capricornus)  with  a  cornucopia  over  its 
back  and  a  dolphin  beneath.  Astronomical  and  luck-bringing 
symbols.  Probably  late  second  century  work  but  possibly 
dating  from  Augustan  times. 

5.  Carnelian. 

A  hand  holding  symbols;  the  caduceus  of  Mercury,  the 
wreath  of  Victory,  the  cornucopia  of  Fortuna,  an  augur’s 
lituus,  and  what  seems  to  be  a  flower.  Crude  work  but  an 
excellent  example  of  the  desire  to  combine  the  luck-bringing 
attributes  of  many  deities. 

6.  Carnelian. 

Early  Christian.  The  Good  Shepherd  with  a  lamb  in  his 
arms  and  two  standing  at  his  feet.  At  the  left  is  a  crudely 
designed  object  which  I  am  unable  to  identify.  Inscription, 
XP,  the  abbreviation  of  Christos. 

7.  Carnelian  (chipped). 

Victory,  winged,  offering  a  wreath  to  Fortuna,  who  car¬ 
ries  her  cornucopia  and  rudder.  Very  crude  late  work. 

8.  Carnelian. 

Cupid  hanging  a  sword  on  a  trophy.  May  be  poorer  work 
of  earlier  imperial  times. 

9.  Red  jasper. 

Cupid  singeing  a  butterfly  (Psyche)  with  his  torch.  May 
be  poorer  work  of  earlier  imperial  times. 

10.  Green  jasper,  in  collection  of  H.  L.  Pangborn,  New  York. 

Capricornus  with  a  cornucopia  on  its  back  and  Scorpio. 
Astronomical  signet  combining  the  two  signs. 

11.  Dark  green  jasper. 

A  lion  (for  the  sign  Leo)  with  a  star  above  him  and  a 
crescent  beneath.  On  the  back  of  this  gem  is  a  palm-branch 
and  the  letters,  I  ALU  (Iao),  the  ineffable  name  of  the  Jews, 
an  epithet  of  the  supreme  god  of  the  Gnostics.  The  owner 
was,  doubtless,  a  member  of  one  of  their  sects.  He  seems 
to  have  been  disposed  to  consider  astronomical  influences  and, 
perhaps,  not  averse  to  what  aid  he  might  obtain  through  the 
lion  of  Mithras. 


380 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


12.  Carnelian,  in  the  Museum  of  Gotha. 

Early  Christian.  The  sacrifice  of  Isaac,  who  kneels  be¬ 
fore  an  altar  beside  which  stands  Abraham,  unbearded,  hold¬ 
ing  the  victim  by  the  head  and  raising  the  sacrificial  knife. 
Behind  him  a  descending  angel  stays  the  blow.  Beneath  him 
a  ram  stands  under  a  tree.  Above,  and  reversed  so  as  to  be 
viewed  on  turning  the  stone  about,  are  the  attendants  of  the 
patriarch,  one  of  whom  holds  a  saddled  horse  by  the  rein. 

13.  Heliotrope,  in  collection  of  Thos.  E.  H.  Curtis,  Plainfield,  N.  J. 

Mithraic.  A  lion,  emblematic  of  the  Sun,  pulling  down  a 
bull,  emblematic  of  the  Earth,  the  whole  signifying  the 
power  of  Mithras.  Inscription,  N I KH  (victory). 

14.  Deep  red  carnelian  (chipped),  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney 

Beatty,  New  York. 

Mithraic.  A  lion  carrying  in  its  jaws  a  bull’s  head, 
with  the  same  significance  as  No.  13  above. 

15.  Carnelian  (chipped). 

An  Egyptian  asp  crowned  with  a  lotos  flower.  Inscrip¬ 
tion,  El C  Z  —  C  CAPAfUC  (Eh  ZevS  2apa7iis),  with  the 
last  two  letters  below  and  reversed.  A  signet  attributable  to 
one  of  the  Egyptian  Gnostic  sects. 

16.  Yellow  jasper  (chipped). 

Hekate,  a  triple  figure,  each  of  the  three  heads  crowned 
with  a  modius.  Four  of  the  six  hands  seem  to  hold  torches, 
the  other  two,  swords  (?).  Inscription,  I  ALU,  and,  around 
the  beveled  edge  of  the  stone,  — BP  AC  AX  CABAU)  AIAUJ 
The  first  part  of  the  latter  is  clear,  viz. :  Abrasax,  the  Gnostic 
Pantheos,  and  Sabao,  for  Sabaoth,  another  title  of  the  same 
divinity.  The  balance  of  the  letters  are  of  doubtful  import. 
The  device  itself  is  a  strange  one  for  a  Gnostic  gem.  On  the 
back  (not  figured)  is  a  worshipper  kneeling  before  an  altar 
upon  which  rises  a  serpent.  This,  it  has  been  suggested,  is 
modern,  but  I  am  inclined  to  believe  it  also  genuine  ancient 
work. 

17.  Blackish  jasper,  in  collection  of  Prof.  Herschel  Parker,  New 

York. 

Bust  of  Helios  crowned  with  rays.  On  one  side  stands 
a  winged  Victory  offering  a  wreath,  on  the  other,  Fortuna 
with  cornucopia  and  rudder.  Inscription,  EYTYXHC  POY — 
OC  (?),  evidently  an  invocation  of  good  fortune  to  some  one, 
but  the  letters  are  too  badly  worn  to  make  a  rendering  of 
the  name  possible. 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


381 


18.  Green  jasper. 

Cupid  bound  to  a  column  which  is  surmounted  by  a 
griffin,  sacred  to  the  Sun-god,  with  its  paw  on  a  wheel.  In¬ 
scription,  AIKAIWC  (Sinai &??).  In  the  Mithraic  Broth¬ 
erhood  the  symbol  of  a  captive  bound  to  a  column  sur¬ 
mounted  by  a  griffin,  was  one  of  the  signs  given  “  To  him 
that  overcometh  ”  and  signified  that  the  neophyte  had  passed 
through  the  trials  preceding  initiation.  The  inscription, 
“  Justly  ”  or  “  I  have  deserved  it,”  often  accompanies  the  de¬ 
vice.  In  the  present  case  the  substitution  of  a  Cupid  is  inter¬ 
esting  and  suggests  the  signet  of  some  love-lorn  member  of 
the  cult  with  a  sense  of  humor. 

19.  Brownish  agate  sprinkled  with  red,  perhaps  the  coralloachates 

(coraline  agate)  or  the  pontica  (Pontic  gem)  of  Pliny. 

Nude  female  figure  holding  two  torches,  one  raised  and 
one  lowered,  symbolizing  the  rising  and  setting  of  some 
Heavenly  body,  usually  the  Sun.  In  the  Mithraic  cult 
the  female  element  of  Mithras  was  Mitra,  a  development  of 
the  Phoenician  Mylitta.  She  was  the  “  Morning  Star,”  a 
genius  presiding  over  love  and  directing  the  harmonious 
movement  of  the  other  planets.  It  seems  plausible  that  this 
gem  embodies  that  idea.  Very  crude  late  work. 

20.  Green  and  brown-red  jasper. 

(a)  The  Abraxas  god  with  human  body  in  a  corselet,  a 
cock’s  head,  and  serpent’s  legs,  a  shield  on  one  arm,  and  a 
dart  in  the  other  hand.  Inscription,  IAUJ,  the  ineffable 
name  of  the  Jews.  Other  seeming  characters  appear  scat¬ 
tered  in  the  field. 

(b)  The  child,  Horus,  the  Harpokrates  of  the  Greeks, 
seated  on  a  lotos  flower,  a  scourge  in  one  hand  and  the  other 
raised  with  finger  at  his  lips.  On  his  head  are  what  may  be 
meant  for  the  two  upright  plumes  worn  by  many  of  the 
Egyptian  deities. 

21.  Red  jasper,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York  (King  Coll., 

Catal.  No.  158). 

A  Gorgon’s  head,  in  full  face,  with  wings  and  surrounded 
by  serpents.  Inscription,  A  PH  TUU  PUJPOMANAAPH  (I  defend 
Roromandares) .  A  good  example  of  the  later  talisman  or 
amulet. 

22.  Convex  plasma  or  green  chalcedony. 

The  Agathodaimon ;  a  serpent  with  a  lion’s  head  (it  looks 
somewhat  like  a  man’s)  crowned  with  ten  rays.  Before  it  are 


382 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


the  three  S  curves  transfixed  by  a  bar,  probably  a  Gnostic 
conventionalization  of  the  serpent-twined  staff  of  ASsculapius. 
Inscription,  A  El  DC  (awe  or  reverence).  On  the  back  of 
the  stone  (not  figured)  is  the  inscription,  XNOVMIC  (the 
name  of  the  Agathodaimon). 

23.  Yellow  jasper. 

The  Mithraic  lion.  Inscription,  ATT  l<t>,  in  two  lines, 
perhaps  part  of  a  name,  perhaps  of  some  charm. 

24.  Green  jasper. 

A  Gnostic  “  Power  ”  or  astral  genius,  with  four  wings 
and  a  tail,  bearing  sceptres  and,  on  its  head,  the  sacramental 
table.  It  also  seems  to  be  phallic  but  the  crudeness  of  the 
work  leaves  this  doubtful.  Around  the  back  are  letters  or 
numerals  of  uncertain  meaning. 

25.  Green  jasper  with  two  or  three  reddish  spots. 

A  beetle,  symbolizing  eternity,  encircled  by  a  serpent  with 
his  tail  in  his  mouth,  symbolizing  the  Sun.  On  the  back  is 
inscribed  I  AW  (Iao),  the  ineffable  name. 

26.  Green  jasper  with  reddish  brown  shadings,  in  collection  of  W. 

Gedney  Beatty,  New  York. 

Horus  (Harpokrates),  with  scourge  and  finger  at  lips, 
seated  on  a  lotos  flower.  For  a  border,  the  Sun-serpent  with 
its  tail  in  its  mouth.  Inscription,  I AUU  and,  apparently, 
the  seven  vowels.  On  the  back  is,  also,  a  long  inscription 
but  so  battered  as  to  be  undecipherable. 

27.  Brownish  red  sard. 

The  Agathodaimon,  or  lion-headed  serpent,  with  a  crown 
of  twelve  rays.  Inscription,  a  circle  of  letters,  some  of  them 
vaguely  cut  and  the  whole  untranslatable. 

28.  Green  jasper,  in  collection  of  Prof.  Herschel  Parker,  New 

York. 

(a)  A  lion  bearing  on  its  back  a  swathed  mummy  above 
which  rises  the  upper  part  of  the  jackal-headed  Anubis,  con¬ 
ductor  of  the  dead.  On  either  side  stand  draped  deities  with 
plume  head-dresses  and  hands  raised  as  if  in  adoration.  Here 
we  have  the  dead  Gnostic  borne  to  his  reward  by  the  Mithraic 
lion  under  the  conduct  of  Anubis. 

(b)  Inscription,  BIBIOYC  (uncertain  meaning),  the 
seven  vowels,  and  I  ALU,  the  ineffable  name. 


MEDIAEVAL  AND  BYZANTINE  GEMS 


383 


PLATE  XXX 

Sassanian,  Byzantine,  Medieval,  and  Renaissance  Gems 
(These  are  ring-stones  except  when  otherwise  stated.) 

Sassanian  Gems 

1.  Carnelian,  from  Armenia. 

A  deer  cropping  herbage  and  giving  suck  to  a  fawn.  In¬ 
scription  in  Syriac,  for  the  translation  of  which  I  am  in¬ 
debted  to  Professor  A.  Y.  W.  Jackson  of  Columbia  Uni¬ 
versity.  It  is  descriptive  and  reads,  Pliata  be-rabuwa 
(young  one  at  nursing).  The  gem  seems  to  be  contemporary 
with  the  early  Sassanian  stones. 

2.  Lapis  lazuli  (chipped),  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New 

York. 

A  Sassanian  king,  in  a  long  tunic  and  with  the  typical 
triangular  arrangement  of  his  braided  hair  rudely  suggested, 
holding  a  sword  with  which  he  menaces  a  lion  standing  on 
its  hind  legs  before  him.  Beneath  the  lion  are  what  seem 
to  be  two  Pehlevi  letters. 

3.  Slightly  convex  carnelian. 

A  woman  seated,  fully  clothed  and  with  hair  in  two 
long  braids,  holding  in  her  lap  a  child,  closely  swaddled. 
Probably  some  queen  with  an  infant  prince.  In¬ 
scription  in  Pehlevi  letters  which  has,  thus  far,  proved 
untranslatable. 

4.  Convex  carnelian,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New  York. 

A  lion’s  head  with  stag’s  antlers. 

5.  Strongly  convex  garnet,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty, 

New  York. 

Representation  of  what  may  be  meant  for  a  standard,  a 
monogram  or,  possibly,  a  fire-altar.  A  very  common  type  of 
Sassanian  seal  which  has  never  been  satisfactorily  explained. 

6.  Strongly  convex  garnet,  from  Cyprus,  in  Metropolitan  Museum, 

New  York  (Cesnola  Coll.,  No.  241). 

Portrait-bust  of  a  bearded  Sassanian  king  wearing  an 
ornamented  tiara  and  with  the  back  hair  in  six  braids  spread 
out  in  triangular  form.  Inscription,  in  fine  Pehlevi  letters, 
read  by  Professor  Jackson  of  Columbia  University,  SartTk; 
apparently  the  name  of  the  owner,  a  Persian  official  who 
used  the  king’s  portrait  as  his  seal. 


384 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


7.  Somewhat  cloudy  chalcedony,  cut  down  through  the  boring  from 

a  hemisphere  or  cone,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York 
(King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  6). 

Bust-portrait  of  a  bearded  Sassanian  king  in  full  front, 
wearing  a  tiara  set  around  with  gems,  a  necklace  and  a  gar¬ 
ment  elaborately  ornamented  with  stars.  The  hair  bunches 
out  at  both  sides,  suggesting  two  triangular  arrangements  of 
braids.  Inscription,  in  fine  Pehlevi  letters,  part  of  which 
has  been  translated  by  Professor  Jackson,  Shah-i  Airan 
(King  of  Persia).  The  name  has,  thus  far,  proved  a  puzzle, 
but  Dr.  King  catalogues  the  portrait,  on  the  strength  of  coin 
resemblances,  as  that  of  Chosroes  II;  “  Nushirwan  the  Just.” 

Medieval  and  Byzantine  Gems 

8.  Yellowish  chalcedony,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York 

(King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  64). 

An  old  man,  bearded,  wearing  a  long  robe,  a  cloak,  and 
a  sort  of  turban,  and  leaning  on  a  staff  before  a  nude  boy 
seated  on  a  rock  ( ?)  with  his  arm  raised  as  if  declaiming. 
Above  the  boy’s  head  is  a  cloud,  perhaps  the  shec-hinah  of 
Divinity.  The  picture  is  explained  by  Dr.  King  as  Christ  dis¬ 
puting  before  the  doctors.  The  style  suggests  the  cameo; 
“  Noah  under  his  vine,”  in  the  Bibliothbque  Nationale,  Paris, 
which  was  held  by  Chabouillet  to  be  early  mediaeval  work. 
Also  it  is  not  unlike  the  religious  Byzantine  coinage  of  John 
Zimisees. 

9.  Sapphire,  formerly  in  the  Waterton  Collection  and  now,  I  be¬ 

lieve,  in  the  British  Museum. 

Head  of  the  Madonna,  wearing  a  veil  thrown  back. 
Probably  late  Mediaeval  work  dating  shortly  before  the  be¬ 
ginning  of  the  Renaissance.  The  stone,  set  in  a  large  ring, 
was  found  at  Hereford,  England,  and,  from  the  motto  cut  in 
Lombard  letters  around  the  bezel,  “  Tecta  lege  lecta  tege,” 
it  was  held  to  have  belonged  to  Matthew  Paris;  a  quite  un¬ 
warrantable  assumption.  It  seems  surely  of  later  date  than 
the  thirteenth  century  and  the  motto  was  a  not  uncommon 
one  on  mediieval  seals. 

10.  Rock  crystal  (chipped),  from  Sicily,  in  collection  of  H.  L.  Pang- 
born,  New  York. 

Christ  with  hand  raised  in  blessing  over  a  small  figure 
before  him  who  bends  his  or  her  knees  slightly.  Behind  him 


RENAISSANCE  GEMS 


385 


part  of  another  small  figure  shows  and,  above  it,  in  the  field,  a 
cross  potence.  Before  the  last  figure  is  what  appears  to  be 
a  letter,  The  work  is  very  crude.  I  venture,  as  a  guess, 
that  it  is  Norman  Sicilian  under  Byzantine  influence.  It  is 
more  than  doubtful  if  this  or  the  following  gem  was  used  as 
a  ring-stone. 

11.  Rock  crystal  (chipped ),  from  Sicily,  in  collection  of  H.  L.  Pang- 

born,  New  York. 

The  Madonna  seated  with  the  infant,  Jesus,  on  her  lap. 
Before  her  stands  St.  Joseph,  bearded.  Around  the  head  of 
each  is  a  halo  and  above  them  a  cross  potence.  Probably 
Norman  Sicilian  work  under  Byzantine  influence. 

12.  Red  jasper,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York  (King  Coll., 

Catal.  No.  221). 

Hercules  strangling  the  Nemean  Lion.  On  the  back  of 
the  stone  is  the  inscription  AAA  hhh,  the  subject 
being  the  charm  prescribed  by  Alexander  of  Tralles  as  a 
protection  against  colic.  The  gem  is  probably  Mediaeval 
work. 


Renaissance  Gems 

13.  Carnelian,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York  (King  Coll., 

Catal.  No.  218). 

Omphale  walking,  nude,  save  for  the  lion-skin  of  Hercules 
thrown  about  her,  and  bearing  his  club  over  her  shoulder. 
Inscription,  6AAHN,  which  Dr.  King  suggests  may  be,  if 
genuine,  a  signature  of  Alexander  Cesati,  known  as  “  II 
Greco.”  M.  Babelon  endorses  similar  signatures  as  of  that 
artist.  The  work  is  characteristic  of  the  Renaissance  or  later 
treatment  of  classical  subjects. 

14.  Unknown  stone,  too  large  for  a  ring.  Owner  unknown. 

A  hero,  in  tunic  and  cloak,  wearing  a  helmet  with  a  crest 
and  plume.  He  is  ploughing  with  tw’o  oxen  with  garlands 
about  their  necks,  and  gazing,  with  raised  arm,  toward  twelve 
birds  flying  above  them.  A  Renaissance  picture  of  Romulus 
seeing  the  twelve  vultures  and  also  marking  out  with  a  fur¬ 
row  the  bounds  of  the  city  he  is  to  build.  Inscription, 
M  .  ARVNTINI  .  TAV,  perhaps  the  signature  of  some  member  of 
the  Taverna  family  of  Milan,  though  seemingly  of  neither 
Tortorino  nor  Giuliano. 

15.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8867). 


386 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


Athena,  in  a  helmet  and  a  long  tunic  slit  up  the  thigh  in 
the  Renaissance  style,  standing  before  a  low  column,  one 
hand  resting  on  her  shield,  the  other  holding  a  nude,  winged 
Nike  who  is  offering  her  a  wreath.  The  whole  would  be 
quite  impossible  in  ancient  work. 

16.  Slightly  convex  carnelian,  too  large  for  a  ring-stone,  in  Biblio- 

thbque  Nationale,  Paris  (Coll.  Chabouillet,  No.  2404). 

A  number  of  Roman  soldiers,  armed  in  both  Greek  and 
Roman  style  and  bearing  three  standards,  bringing  Jugurtha 
as  a  prisoner  before  Sulla,  who,  dressed  in  his  toga,  is  seated 
in  a  curule  chair  set  on  a  square  platform.  Behind  him 
stands  another  officer  with  one  hand  on  his  shoulder.  Beyond 
the  group  is  a  colonnade.  A  characteristic  Renaissance  com¬ 
position. 

17.  Carnelian,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York  (King  Coll., 

Catal.  No.  109). 

Head  of  Medousa,  three-quarter  face,  with  wings  and 
serpent  locks  clustering  beneath  the  chin.  Characteristic 
work  of  the  Renaissance. 

18.  Carnelian,  veined  with  crimson,  popularly  known  as  a  blood- 

agate,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York  (King  Coll.,  Catal. 
No.  225). 

Hercules,  with  lion-skin  over  his  head  and  fluttering  about 
him,  his  club  thrown  behind,  and  one  foot  resting  on  a  half 
nude  female  figure  with  wild  hair  personifying  Mother  Earth, 
strangles  above  her  in  his  arms,  her  son,  the  giant,  Antaeus. 
The  design  is  full  of  the  violent  action  characteristic  of  non- 
classical  work. 

19.  Slightly  convex  yellowish  carnelian,  in  Metropolitan  Museum, 

New  York  (King  Coll.,  Catal.  No.  172). 

A  woman,  fully  draped,  embracing  a  man  with  mantle 
over  one  shoulder  and  falling  about  his  hips  and  thighs.  Dr. 
King  thinks  the  picture  is  of  the  parting  of  Coriolanus  and 
Volumnia.  Characteristic  Renaissance  treatment. 

20.  Black  jasper,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8874). 

Sisyphus,  nude  and  bearded,  rolling  his  great  rock  up 
the  hillside.  Dr.  King  figures  this  gem  (PI.  XLI,  11,  of  his 
Antique  Gems  and  Rings)  and  describes  it  as  of  Roman 
date,  but  everything  about  it  bespeaks  the  Renaissance. 


RENAISSANCE  GEMS 


387 


PLATE  XXXI 

Renaissance  Gems  ( concluded ) 

(These  are  ring-stones  with  the  exception  of  the  large  plaque,  No.  12.) 

1.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8838). 

The  judgment  of  Paris,  who,  seated  under  a  tree,  with 
cloak  about  his  hips  and  shepherd’s  crook,  gives  the  apple  to 
Aphrodite,  whose  garment  falls  over  one  arm  and  about  her 
hips.  Eros  stands  before  her,  and,  beside,  Hera,  nude,  reaches 
out  in  vain  for  the  prize.  Her  peacock,  with  spread  tail, 
stands  near,  and,  behind  them,  Athena,  her  helmet,  spear, 
and  shield  on  the  ground,  is  casting  aside  her  garment. 

2.  Carnelian,  in  BibliothGpie  Nationale,  Paris  (Coll.  Chabouillet, 

No.  2337). 

A  Bacchic  feast  with  many  minute  figures  of  satyrs  and 
nymphs.  Above  them  two  flying  Cupids  hold  a  canopy.  In 
the  exergue  is  a  man  fishing;  supposed  to  be  the  rebus  sig¬ 
nature  of  Piero  Maria  da  Pescia,  the  intimate  friend  of 
Michael  Angelo,  whose  signet  this  ring  is  thought  to  have 
been. 

3.  Agate  of  two  shades,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York  (King 

Coll.,  Catal.  No.  85). 

A  male  and  female  Tritdn  swimming  together,  the  former 
with  a  steering  oar  over  his  shoulder.  The  figures  are  cut 
in  the  dark  part  of  the  stone,  the  water  in  the  more  trans¬ 
parent  light  shade.  Dr.  King  describes  it  as  “  A  cinque  cento 
copy  of  a  well-known  gem  in  Florence.”  If  it  be  a  direct 
copy,  the  Florentine  gem  must  be  also  cinque  cento,  as 
no  ancient  artist  would  have  treated  the  subject  in  this 
way. 

4.  Convex  pale  brownish  chalcedony,  in  Bibliothbque  Nationale, 

Paris  (Coll.  Chabouillet,  No.  2319). 

A  female  head,  with  laurel  crown  and  necklace.  Furt- 
wangler  considers  it  to  be  Hellenistic;  the  portrait  of  a 
Ptolemaic  queen,  probably  Arsinoe  III,  but  the  authorities 
at  Paris  hold  it  a  Renaissance  work,  a  judgment  which  the 
character  and  treatment  of  the  head  lead  me  to  concur  in 
most  emphatically. 

5.  Carnelian,  in  Boston  Museum  (No.  99.118). 

A  beardless  youth  seated  on  a  stone  decorated  with  a 
ram’s  head,  and  a  bearded  man  with  wild  hair  standing  before 
him.  Both  are  playing  on  the  single  pipe.  Between  them 


388 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


runs  a  Cupid  and  above,  in  the  background,  is  a  Herm  statue 
of  Pan.  All  the  figures  are  nude. 

6.  Convex  amethyst,  in  Bibliothbque  Nationale,  Paris  (Coll.  Cha- 

bouillet,  No.  2077). 

Portrait-bust  of  a  beardless,  bald-headed  Roman,  the  toga 
showing  about  his  shoulders.  It  has  been  called  a  portrait 
of  Cicero.  Inscription,  AIOCKOY PIAOY.  Both  head  and 
signature  are  Renaissance  work,  probably  of  the  seventeenth 
century;  a  copy,  Furtwiingler  thinks,  though  I  can  hardly 
believe  a  very  accurate  one,  of  a  genuine  ancient  gem. 

7.  Heliotrope,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8844). 

Apollo,  with  cloak  about  his  neck  and  around  his  legs, 
seated  with  his  lyre  on  a  low,  garlanded  column.  Before, 
leaning  on  a  staff,  stands  a  fully  draped  woman,  doubtless  a 
Renaissance  conception  of  a  Muse. 

8.  Convex  carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8937). 

Head  of  an  emperor,  perhaps  Augustus  in  his  later  years, 
wearing  a  laurel  crown  with  fillets. 

9.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8837). 

Hephaestus  snaring  in  his  net  Ares  and  Aphrodite,  who 
lie  in  each  other’s  arms.  Cupid  lies  asleep  before  them. 

10.  Brownish  yellow  jasper,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8835). 

Silenus,  nude  and  drunken,  carrying  a  lyre  and  riding  on 
an  ass  in  the  midst  of  a  procession  of  Bacchanals. 

11.  Light  convex  carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8836). 

Four  women  making  offerings  of  a  ram,  fruit,  and  incense 
at  an  altar.  One  of  them  is  blowing  a  long  horn  and,  behind 
her,  a  child  is  playing  on  the  double  pipes.  A  tree  curves 
over  the  group. 

12.  Large  plaque.  Unknown  stone  and  owner. 

Five  riders  on  prancing  horses,  attacking  with  long 
truncheons  a  lion  and  lioness  which  three  dogs  pursue.  In¬ 
scription,  VALERIVS  .  VICENTINVS  .  F.  .  This  is  not  the  cus¬ 
tomary  signature  of  Valerio  dei  Belli  (il  Vicentino),  but 
the  large  size  of  the  gem  may  have  rendered  his  usual  ab¬ 
breviation  unnecessary. 

13.  Convex  sardonyx,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8866). 

Fully  draped  woman  carrying  a  jar. 

14.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  8841). 

A  bearded  man,  with  mantle  falling  from  his  neck,  try¬ 
ing  to  draw  toward  him  a  woman,  nude  save  for  a  floating 
scarf. 


MODERN  GEMS 


389 


PLATE  XXXII 

Modern  Gems 

1.  Green  jasper,  property  of  H.  G.  Dwight. 

Modern  Turkish  signet.  Name  of  the  owner,  Omar  ben 
Kassim,  with  decorative  flower  motive.  On  the  back  is  the 
name  of  a  former  owner  which  has  been  partly  erased. 

2.  Carnelian,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New  York. 

Mask.  Beneath  it  are  a  thyrsos  decorated  with  fillets 
and  a  torch  crossed.  Before,  is  what  appears  to  be  an  imita¬ 
tion  of  old  Roman  ligatured  letters.  Work  of  Mariano  Mac- 
ceroni. 

3.  Lapis  lazuli,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New  York. 

Hercules  contending  with  the  Nemean  Lion.  Work  of 
Mariano  Macceroni. 

4.  Brownish  chalcedony,  formerly  in  the  possession  of  the  late 

Prof.  George  N.  Olcott,  New  York. 

Jupiter,  nude,  with  sceptre  and  thunderbolt,  standing  be¬ 
fore  an  altar  upon  which  perches  an  eagle.  Work,  probably, 
of  one  of  the  Lanzis. 

5.  Carnelian,  formerly  in  the  possession  of  the  late  Prof.  Geo.  N. 

Olcott,  New  York. 

Victory,  winged  and  draped,  laying  a  palm-branch  on 
an  altar  upon  which  is  also  an  ear  of  wheat.  Work,  prob¬ 
ably,  of  one  of  the  Lanzis. 

6.  Convex  stone  which  seems  to  be  artificially  colored. 

Cupid  running  and  playing  on  the  double  pipes. 

7.  Carnelian,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty,  New  York. 

Crudely  cut  head  with  a  palm-branch  before  it.  Typical 
cheap  forgery. 

8.  Bloodstone,  in  collection  of  Prof.  Herschel  Parker,  New 

Y’ork. 

Ajax,  nude  and  beardless,  with  helmet  and  shield,  seizing 
Kassandra,  who,  fully  draped,  is  seated  on  the  pedestal  of  the 
Palladium  which  she  embraces.  Above  is  a  star.  Cable 
border.  A  modern  Asia  Minor  forgery. 

9.  Convex  moonstone,  owned  by  the  subject  of  the  portrait. 

Modern  portrait-head,  work  of  Ottavio  Negri. 

10.  Brownish  chalcedony. 

Orthryades,  nude,  with  helmet  and  shield,  seated  and 
writing  on  one  of  three  shields  that  are  before  him.  Modern 


390 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 


imitation  of  the  well  known  ancient  subject.  (See  PI. 
XVII,  5.) 

11.  Slightly  convex  topaz,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  9395). 

Head  of  horned  satyr  crowned  with  a  vine  bearing  grapes. 
Work  of  Luigi  Pic-hler,  signed,  €AAH  NOY,  and  probably  in¬ 
tended  as  a  forgery  of  the  work  of  Alexander  Cesati  (II 
Greco). 

12.  Red  jasper,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  9334). 

Kneeling  warrior  in  full  panoply,  with  sword.  Modern 
imitation  of  the  well  known  early  Roman  subject.  (See  PI. 
XVII,  8.) 

13.  Stone  and  owner  unknown. 

Venus  seated  on  a  rock,  with  a  mantle  about  her  legs, 
and  fishing  for  Cupids.  She  is  drawing  one  up  with  her  line 
and  another,  already  caught,  is  in  a  basket  behind  her.  In¬ 
scription,  <f>P .  IIPAHTOZ ;  the  signature  of  Francesco 
Sirletti. 

14.  Convex  variegated  carnelian,  in  collection  of  W.  Gedney  Beatty, 

New  York. 

A  youth,  wearing  a  petasos  and  with  a  cloak  hanging 
from  his  shoulders,  carrying  a  spear  and  holding  a  horse  by 
the  bridle.  Said  to  be  the  work  of  Antonio  Lanzi. 

15.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  9235). 

Female  bust  with  hair  elaborately  dressed.  Inscription, 
fllAIOC  ;  an  attempted  forgery  of  an  ancient  artist’s  sig¬ 
nature. 

16.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  9393). 

Venus,  nude,  standing  on  a  shell  drawn  by  a  team  of 
dolphins  which  she  is  driving.  Inscription,  DIXAGP;  the 
signature  of  Johann  Pichler. 

17.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  9401). 

Bust  of  Euripides,  with  the  signature  of  Marchant. 

18.  Convex  aqua  marine,  in  Metropolitan  Museum,  New  York  (King 

Coll.,  Catal.  No.  100). 

Head  of  Athena  in  an  Attic  helmet  decorated  with  a  sea- 
dragon.  Inscription,  P€TA;  the  signature  of  Rega. 

19.  Carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  9233). 

Head  of  a  Roman  matron  with  elaborately  dressed  hair 
and  jeweled  hair-band.  Inscription,  AYAOY ;  a  forgery  of 
the  signature  of  Aulus.  Work  of  Calandrelli. 

20.  Stone  and  owner  unknown. 

Venus,  nude  and  holding  out  a  mantle  over  a  Cupid  rid- 


MODERN  GEMS 


391 


ing  on  a  dolphin.  Inscription,  KAAEI;  the  signature  of 
Cades. 

21.  Chalcedony,  now  or  late  in  the  possession  of  the  New  York  Char¬ 

ities  Organization  Society. 

Kapaneus,  with  helmet,  shoes,  shield,  sword,  and  floating 
mantle,  falling  before  the  wall  of  Thebes.  The  thunder¬ 
bolt  which  has  slain  him  lies  at  his  feet.  Inscription, 
nVPrOTEAHI;  (Pyrgoteles).  A  typical  example  of  the 
Poniatowski  forgeries. 

22.  Slightly  convex  carnelian,  in  Berlin  Museum  (Catal.  No.  9396). 

Eros,  nude,  and  Psyche,  with  butterfly  wings  and  a 
mantle  about  her  hips,  embracing  each  other.  Inscription, 
A  TTIXAGP;  the  signature  of  Luigi  Pichler. 


ALPHABETICAL  LIST  OF  ATTRIBUTES,  ASPECTS,  AND 
SACRED  OR  SACRIFICIAL  ANIMALS,  TREES 
AND  FLOWERS 


Many  of  these  below  noted  have  not  yet  been  found  on  gems,  and, 
of  course,  it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  still  others,  recording 
special  cults  of  which  little  is  known,  may  turn  up  at  any  time. 
This  list  should  prove  helpful  to  students  in  identifying  the  gems 
that  come  into  their  hands. 


Altar,  strewing  incense  on;  Pietas  244. 
Altar  flame,  thrusting  hand  into ; 

Mucius  Scaevola  268. 

Amazon,  supporting;  Achilleus  262. 
Amphora;  Seilenos  225,  Satyrs  226, 
Daktyl  (?)  233,  Methe  237,  Herakles 

255,  Tantalos  260,  Kadmos  260. 
Animals,  fighting  with  or  holding  up; 

Besa  249;  in  fragments,  Aias  265. 
Ant;  Demeter  206. 

Apple;  Aphrodite  221,  Atalante(  ?)  259, 
Paris  266. 

Apples,  of  the  Hesperides ;  Herakles 

256. 

Arm  bent;  Nemesis  216. 

Arms  or  armor;  Achilleus  262,  Thetis 
262,  Odysseus  264,  Aias  265,  Patrok- 
los  265. 

Arrow;  ApollS  208,  Artemis  212,  Eros 
222,  (pierced  by,  Tityos  261),  (fixed 
in  foot,  Achilleus  262,  Diomedes  264), 
Philoktetes  263,  Paris  266. 

Arrows,  bunch  of;  Veiovis  241. 

Ass;  Hestia  207,  Dionysos  224,  Seilenos 
225. 

Ass-headed;  Typhon  247,  Abraxas  248. 
Ax,  double;  Jupiter  Dolichenus  202, 
Penthesileia  263,  Amazons  268. 

Baboon;  Thoth  247. 

Balance;  Juno  Moneta  203. 

Ball;  Tyehe  230. 

Basket  (kalathos)  ;  Hades  205,  Deme¬ 
ter  206,  Apollo  209,  Aphrodite  220, 
Annona  242. 

Bear;  Artemis  211. 

Bees;  Ephesian  Artemis  ( ?)  213. 

Bird;  Pan  226,  (of  augury,  Providentia 
Deorum  244 ) . 

Bird,  water,  holding;  Artemis  211. 
Bird  combined  with  woman  (Harpy) 
251,  (Seiren)  251;  with  latter,  Hera 
203. 


Birds ;  Ephesian  Artemis  (?)  213,  ( Stym- 
phalian,  Herakles  255 ) . 

Boar;  Artemis  211,  Herakles  255. 

Boar’s  head;  Meleagros  258,  Ata- 
lante  (  ?)  259. 

Bonus  Eventus,  small  figure  of;  Spes 
245. 

Bough;  Poseidon  204,  Arician  Diana 

212,  Hebe  236,  Herakles  256.  Apt  to 
be  given  to  many  deities  for  merely 
art  or  decorative  reasons. 

Bow;  Apollo  208,  209,  Artemis  212, 
Aphrodite  221,  Eros  222,  Rhea  232, 
Herakles  254,  Philoktetes  263,  Paris 
266. 

Breasts,  rows  of;  Ephesian  Artemis 

213. 

Bridle;  Nemesis  216. 

Bull;  (in  guise  of,  Zeus  199),  Jupiter 
Dolichenus  202,  Poseidon  204,  (riding 
on,  Artemis  212),  (sacrificing  or 
killing,  Nike  218,  Mithras  248), 
Aphrodite  221,  Dionysos  224,  Europe 
199,  234,  Themis  234,  (Marathon, 
Herakles  256),  Pasiphae  261. 

Bull-headed  man  (Minotaur)  258;  con¬ 
tending  with,  Theseus  258. 

Bull,  man-headed  (Okeanos)  234,  (Riv¬ 
er  god)  251,  (Acheloos)  251;  with 
last,  Herakles  256. 

Butterfly;  Aphrodite  221,  Psyche  223, 
Hermes  228. 

Caduceus;  Nike  218,  Psyche  223, 
Hermes  229,  Iris  237,  Eirene  239, 
Felicitas  243. 

Candelabra;  Nike  218. 

Cap  or  helmet,  oval;  Hephaistos  229, 
Dioskoroi  257,  Odysseus  264. 

Cap,  Phrygian;  Ganymedes  237,  Liber- 
tas  243,  Mithras  248. 

Casket,  mystic;  Demeter  206,  Perse¬ 
phone  206. 


393 


394 


LIST  OP  ATTRIBUTES 


Cattle;  Demeter  206,  Gaia  234. 

Chariot;  Zeus  199,  (drawn  by  horses  or 
hippokamps,  Poseidon  204),  (winged 
or  drawn  by  serpents,  Triptolemos 
207),  (drawn  by  swans,  Apollo  209), 
Helios  210,  (drawn  by  hinds,  Artemis 
212),  (drawn  by  horses  or  cows, 
Selene  214),  (drawn  by  griffins, 
Nemesis  216),  Nike  218,  (drawn  by 
panthers,  Dionysos  224),  ( drawn  _by 
lions,  Seilenos  225,  Cybele  232),  Eos 
237,  (with  body  of  Hektor  trailing 
behind,  Achilleus  262),  (being 
dragged  behind,  Hektor  263). 

Children;  Gaia  234,  Hilaritas  243,  Me- 
deia  260. 

Club;  Melpomene  211,  Priapos  238, 
Herakles  254,  Omphale  256,  Theseus 
257. 

Cock;  Persephone  206,  Athena  217, 
Seilenos  225,  Hermes  229,  Asklepios 
231. 

Cock’s  head,  having;  Abraxas  248. 

Column;  Apollo  (?)  208,  Venus  Vic- 
trix  221,  Hermes  228,  Securitas  244. 

Conch  shell;  Tritons  204. 

Cord;  Hekate  216. 

Cornucopia;  Hades  205,  Demeter  205, 
Persephone  206,  Triptolemos  207, 
Athena  218,  Aphrodite  220,  Dionysos 
224,  Tyche  230,  Themis  234,  Euthenia 
236,  Eirene  239,  Annona  242,  Feli- 
citas  243,  Hilaritas  243,  Honos  243, 
most  Roman  personifications  245, 
Genii  246,  Harpokrates  247,  Isis  247, 
Herakles  255. 

Corpse,  with  arrow  in  heel,  carrying; 
Aias  265. 

Corpse,  naked;  Patroklos  265,  (carry¬ 
ing,  Menelaos  265). 

Corselet;  Abraxas  248. 

Cow;  Aventine  Diana  212,  Pasiphag 
261. 

Cow-headed;  Isis  247. 

Crab’s  claws;  Okeanos  234. 

Crescent;  Artemis  212,  Selene  214, 
Aphrodite  220,  Cybele-Artemis  232. 

Crescent  and  Sun ;  iEternitas  242. 

Crescent-shaped  boat,  seated  in ;  Ho- 
rus  247. 

Orescent-like  shield;  Penthesileia  263, 
Amazons  268. 

Crow;  Juno  Sospita  202,  Apollo  208. 

Cuckoo;  Hera  202. 

Cup;  Persephone  206,  Dionysos  224, 
Seilenos  225,  Satyrs  226,  (rhyton, 
Kabeiroi  233),  Hygeia  231,  (goblet, 
Euthenia  236),  Hebe  236,  Gany¬ 


medes  237,  Methe  237,  Salus  (  ?)  244, 
Herakles  255,  Odysseus  264. 

Cymbals;  Satyrs  226,  Bacchantes  227. 

Cypress;  Hades  205. 

Dagger;  Hekate  216,  Libertas  243. 

Dancing;  Penates  245. 

Dart;  Abraxas  248. 

Deer;  Artemis  211,  212,  213,  Aphrodite 
221,  Virbius  268. 

Diadem  (stephanos);  Hera  202,  Deme¬ 
ter  205,  Persephone  206,  Selene  214, 
Genius  Romanorum  246. 

Dice;  Nike  218. 

Discus;  Hyakinthos  259. 

Dish  (patera),  sacrificial;  Zeus  199,  H§- 
ra  202,  Triptolemos  207,  Hestia  207, 
Arician  Diana  212,  Athena  217,  Spes 
245. 

Distaff  or  spindle;  Ephesian  Arte¬ 
mis  (  ?)  213,  Athena  217,  Klotho  238, 
Herakles  256. 

Dog;  Artemis  212,  Ganymedes  237,  Ak- 
taion  258,  Meleagros  258,  Odysseus 
264. 

Dog  or  wolf  muzzle  head-dress;  Hades 

205. 

Dog  Sirius,  riding  on;  Isis  248. 

Dog,  three-headed,  (Kerberos)  252; 
with,  Hades  205,  Herakles  256. 

Dolphin;  Poseidon  203,  Demeter  (?) 

206,  Apollo  208,  209,  Aphrodite  220, 
Dionysos  224,  Sea-nymphs  227,  Meli- 
kertes  234. 

Dove;  Demeter  (?)  206,  Aphrodite  221, 
Fides  243. 

Drum  (tympanum);  Rhea  232,  Cybele 
232. 

Eagle;  Zeus  199,  Hades  (?)  205,  Nike 
218,  Ganymedes  237,  Prometheus 
261. 

Ears  pointed,  having;  Seilenos  225, 
Satyrs  226,  Besa  249. 

Egg;  Aphrodite  221,  an  Orphic  symbol 
146. 

Elephant  skin  head-dress;  Libya  242. 

Fan,  bird’s  wing;  Philoktetes  263. 

Fawn;  Dionysos  224. 

Fawn  skin;  Dionysos  224,  Bacchantes 
227. 

Fillets  hanging  from  hands  ( ? )  ;  Ephe¬ 
sian  Artemis  213. 

Finger  to  lips;  Harpokrates  247,  Horus 
247. 

Fir-apple;  Artemis  212. 


LIST  OF  ATTRIBUTES 


395 


Fish;  Syria  Dea  233. 

Fish’s  tail,  having;  Tritons  204,  Glau- 
kos  235. 

Flower;  Juno  Lucina  202,  Apollo  209, 
Artemis  212,  Aphrodite  220,  (bud, 
Spes  245). 

Flowers ;  Hera  (  ? )  202,  Nymphs  227, 
Rhea  232,  Chloris  239. 

Flute;  Euterpe  211,  Satyrs  226,  Mar- 
syas  226. 

Foot;  Jupiter  Serapis  201,  (held  out  to 
be  treated,  Philoktetes  263),  (treat¬ 
ing,  Machaon  263). 

Four-armed;  Astral  genii  249. 

Four-handed;  Apollo  209. 

Fruits;  Zeus  200,  Hades  205,  Arician 
Diana  212,  Rhea  232,  Vertumnus  240, 
Pomona  240,  Fides  243. 

Garment  raised;  Spes  245;  held  out 
to  catch  shower  of  gold,  Danae  259. 

Gate,  carrying;  Kapaneus  266. 

Girdle,  of  Hippolyte;  Herakles  255. 

Globe;  Urania  211,  (ball,  Tyche  230), 
Lachesis  238. 

Goat;  Zeus  199,  Juno  Caprotina  202, 
Apollo  208,  209,  Aphrodite  220,  Di¬ 
onysos  224,  Seilenos  225,  Satyrs 
226,  Veiovis  241. 

Goats;  Ephesian  Artemis  (?)  213. 

Goat’s  legs,  having;  Pan  226. 

Goat’s  skin;  Juno  Sospita  203. 

Goose;  Juno  Regina  202,  Dionysos  224, 
Aphrodite  224. 

Grapes,  bunch  of;  Poseidon  204,  Di¬ 
onysos  224,  Methe  237. 

Grape-vine;  Dionysos  223,  224,  Methe 
237. 

Griffin;  Apollo  208,  210,  Nemesis  216, 
Aphrodite  221. 

Hair  long;  Honos  243,  Virtus  243. 

Hammer;  Hephaistos  229,  Kouretes  233, 
Kabeiroi  233,  Daktyloi  233. 

Hand  outstretched;  Fides  242;  con¬ 
cealed  in  garment,  Pudicitia  244;  to 
head,  Securitas  244. 

Hands  clasped;  Fides  242;  the  confar- 
reatio  243. 

Hare;  Artemis  211,  Seilenos  225. 

Hat,  broad-brimmed,  (petasos)  ;  Hermes 
229,  Theseus  257. 

Hawk;  Apollo  208,  (-headed,  Abraxas 
248). 

Heads  back  to  back;  Janus  240. 

Helmet;  Apollo  209,  Athena  217,  Ares 
219,  (in  hand,  Athena-Nike  218, 
Venus  Victrix  221),  Rhea  232,  Dea 


Roma  241,  Virtus  243,  (winged,  Per¬ 
seus  258). 

Hind,  Kyryneian;  Herakles  255. 

Hippokamp;  Poseidon  204,  Aphro¬ 
dite  (  ? )  220,  Amphi trite  220,  Dak- 
tyl  (?)  233. 

Hoop;  Hermes  229. 

Horn;  Hypnos  235,  Morpheus  236, 
(drinking,  Penates  245),  (having 
ram’s,  Jupiter  Ammon,  202). 

Homs,  having;  Dionysos-Zagreus  ( ? ) 
224,  Seilenos  225,  Satyrs  226,  Pan 
226,  Okeanos  234,  Isis  247,  (stag’s, 
Aktaion  258). 

Horse;  Poseidon  204,  Aphrodite  (?) 
220,  Amphitrite  220,  (falling  from, 
Marcus  Curtius  268). 

Horse  combined  with  man  (centaur) 
250,  Cheiron  250,  Nessos  250. 

Horse  combined  with  fish  (hippo¬ 
kamp)  250. 

Horse-headed;  Demeter  (?)  206. 

Horse,  winged,  ( Pegasos )  25 1 ;  mounted 
on,  Bellerophon  258. 

Horses;  Dioskoroi  257. 

Horses;  man-eating  of  Diomedes, 
Herakles  256,  Diomedes,  264. 

Ibis;  Thoth  247. 

Infant;  (Ploutos,  in  arms,  Eirene  239), 
(parting  from  [Astyanax  and  An¬ 
dromache],  Hektor  263),  (holding 
and  bidding  farewell  to  Hektor,  An¬ 
dromache  263 ) . 

Ivy;  Dionysos  224. 

Ivy  wreath;  Thalia  211. 

lynx  (  ?)  ;  Aphrodite  221. 

Jackal-headed;  Anubis  247. 

Jar;  Hermes  228,  Glaukos,  son  of  Mi¬ 
nds,  235,  Polyeidos  235. 

Key;  Hades  205,  Persephone  206, 
Hekate  215,  216;  Janus  240. 

Kid,  dismembered;  Bacchantes  227. 

Ladder,  falling  from;  Kapaneus  266. 

Lamp;  Athena  217. 

Laurel;  Dionysos  224. 

Laurel  wreath  or  branch;  Apollo  208, 
209;  Honos  243,  Libertas  243. 

Legs,  bandy;  Besa  249. 

Legs  crossed;  Tlianatos  235. 

Lion;  Juno  Coelestis  203,  Dionysos  224, 
Rhea  232,  Cybele  232,  Herakles  255. 

Lion,  holding;  Artemis  211. 


396 


LIST  OF  ATTRIBUTES 


Lion  with  goat’s  head  springing  from 
back  and  serpent’s  tail  (Chimaira) 
251;  attacking,  Bellerophon  258. 

Lion  with  woman’s  head  or  head  and 
breasts  (sphinx)  250;  killing  or 
standing  before,  Oidipous  261. 

Lion  with  wings  and  head  of  eagle 
(griffin)  250,  Apollo  208. 

Lions;  Ephesian  Artemis  (  ?)  213,  Cy- 
bele  232,  Syria  Dea  233,  Medousa  239. 

Lion-skin;  Herakles  254,  Omphale  256, 
Theseus  257. 

Lot,  drawing;  Atropos  238. 

Lotos  flower;  Harpokrates  247,  (seated 
on,  Horus  247),  Isis  247. 

Lynx;  Dionysos  224. 

Lyre;  Apollo  208,  Terpsichore  211, 
Erato  211,  Ephesian  Artemis  (?) 
213,  Seilenos  225,  Hermes  229, 
Herakles  255,  Orpheus  258,  Aehilleus 
262. 

Mace;  Abraxas  248. 

Manikin,  at  work  on;  Prometheus  261. 

Mask;  Melpomene  211,  Thalia  211, 
Athena  218,  Dionysos  224. 

Measure,  corn,  (modius),  on  head;  Ju¬ 
piter  Serapis  201. 

Measuring  rod;  Nemesis  216. 

Medousa  head;  Athena  217,  Perseus 
258. 

Mirror;  Aphrodite  221. 

Moon  and  Sun;  ^Eternitas  242. 

Mouse;  Apollo  208. 

Mussel-shell;  Aphrodite  220. 

Myrtle;  Aphrodite  221. 

Narcissus;  Hades  205. 

Oak;  Cybele  232. 

Oak  wreath;  Zeus  200. 

Olive;  Herakles  255. 

Olive  branch;  Athena  217,  Eirene  239, 
Pax  239. 

Olive  wreath;  Zeus  199,  Honos  243, 
Kassandra(?)  266. 

Omphalos,  Delphic;  Apollo  209. 

Orb  of  moon  between  horns ;  Isis  247. 

Owl;  Athena  217. 

Ox;  Zeus  ( ?)  201,  Rhea  232. 

Palladium;  Hestia  207,  Odysseus  264, 
Diomedes  264. 

Palm ;  Apollo  208,  Hermes  229. 

Palm  branch;  Nike  218,  Ares  219, 
Hilaritas  243. 

Palm  branches;  Ephesian  Artemis  213. 

Panther;  Dionysos  224. 


Peacock;  Juno  202. 

Phallus;  Dionysos  224,  Seilenos  225, 
Satyrs  226,  Hermes  228,  Priapos  238. 

Piek-ax;  Hades  205. 

Pig  on  bundle  of  myrtle;  Persepho¬ 
ne  ( ?)  206. 

Pine;  Cybele  232. 

Pine  wreath;  Poseidon  204,  Pan  226. 

Pipes,  shepherd’s;  Pan  226,  Hermes 
229. 

Ploughshare;  Poseidon  204,  Odysseus 
264. 

Polypus,  slaying;  Apollo  210. 

Pomegranate;  Hera  202,  Demeter  206. 
Persephone  206,  Apollo  209. 

Poplar;  Herakles  255. 

Poppy;  Demeter  206,  Triptolemos  207, 
Aphrodite  219,  Hypnos  235,  Euthenia 
236. 

Pruning-knife ;  Vertumnus  240,  Po¬ 
mona  240. 

Purse;  Hermes  229. 

Quail;  Artemis  211. 

Quiver;  Artemis  212,  Aphrodite  221, 
Er5s  222,  Paris  266. 

Raft,  supported  by  amphoras  or  wine¬ 
skins;  Seilenos  225,  Herakles  255. 

Ram;  Ares  219,  Hermes  228,  Odysseus 
264. 

Ram’s  horn;  Jupiter  Ammon  202. 

Raven;  Apollo  208. 

Rays,  crown  of;  Jupiter  Serapis  201, 
Helios  210,  Hekate  215,  Chnumis 
248. 

Rock;  Theseus  257,  (bound  to,  Pro¬ 
metheus  261). 

Rocks,  throwing;  Earth-giants  252. 

Roll  or  scroll;  Kalliope  211,  Kleio  211. 

Roma,  small  figure  of ;  Annona  242. 

Rose;  Aphrodite  221,  Dionysos  224. 

Rudder;  Aphrodite  220,  Tyche  230. 

Sack,  of  Aiolos;  Odysseus  264. 

Sacramental  table  on  head;  Astral 
genii  249. 

Sail;  Isis  Pharia  248. 

Satyr,  appearing  as;  Zeus  (?)  199. 

Scales;  Themis  234,  Atropos  238, 
Astraia  239,  ASquitas  240. 

Sceptre;  Zeus  199,  Hera  202,  Hades 
205,  Persephone  206,  Hestia  207, 
Eirene  239,  Honos  243,  Genius  Ro- 
manorum  246,  Astral  genii  249. 

Scourge;  Hekate  216,  Nemesis  216, 
Eumenides  238,  Horus  247,  Abraxas 
248. 


LIST  OF  ATTRIBUTES 


397 


Scroll  or  roll;  Kalliope  211,  Kleio  211. 

Sea- monster;  Aphrodite  (? )  220,  Am- 
phitrite  220,  Sea  nymphs  227, 
(Hydra,  Herakles  255),  Thetis  262. 

Serpent;  Zeus  200,  Demeter  206, 
Apollo  208,  Hekate  216,  Athena  217, 
Dionysos  224,  Sabazios  224,  Bac¬ 
chante  227,  Hygeia  231,  Rhea  232, 
Eos(?)  237,  Salus  (  ?)  244,  Genii 
246,  Isis  247,  (with  lion’s  head, 
Chnumis  248),  Herakles  256,  Kadmos 
260,  Philoktetes  263,  Kassandra  ( ? ) 
266. 

Serpent-drawn  chariot,  riding  in;  Trip- 
tolemos  207. 

Serpent  hair,  having;  Eumenides  238, 
Medousa  239. 

Serpent  legs,  having;  Abraxas  248, 
Earth-giants  252. 

Serpent-twined  staff;  Asklepios  231. 

Serpents;  Demeter  (?)  206,  (riding  on, 
Artemis  of  Kholkis  212),  Hekate  215, 
Eumenides  238,  Medousa  239,  (child 
strangling,  Herakles  255),  (attacked 
by,  Laokoon  266),  in  guise  of,  genii 
of  places  246). 

Shears;  Atropos  238. 

Sheep;  Hades  205,  Hermes  228,  (lambs, 
Gaia  254). 

Shells;  Tritons  204,  Aphrodite  220,  Sea- 
nymphs  227,  Glaukos  235. 

Shepherd’s  crook (  pedum) ;  Thalia  211; 
Satyrs  226,  Pan  226,  Ganymedes  237. 

Shield;  Hera(  ?)  203,  Juno  Sospita  203, 
Athena  217,  (writing  on,  Nike  218, 
Orthryades  262),  Ares  219,  Aphro¬ 
dite,  especially  Venus  Victrix  221, 
Kouretes(?)  233,  Dea  Roma  241, 
Abraxas  248. 

Ship,  or  prow  of;  Poseidon  203,  Apollo 
209,  Mars  Navalis  219,  Aphrodite 
220,  Annona  242,  Jason  259,  Argos 
260. 

Sickle;  Priapos  238,  Eumenides  238, 
Saturn  240. 

Sickle-shaped  sword;  Perseus  258. 

Sparrow;  Aphrodite  221. 

Spear;  Hera(?)  203,  Juno  Curites 
203,  Juno  Sospita  203,  (serpent- 
twined,  Hades  205),  Apollo  209, 
Artemis  212,  Hekate  216,  Athena  217, 
Ares  219,  Venus  Victrix  221,  Rhea 
232,  Kouretes  (?)  233,  Dea  Roma 
241,  Fama  242,  Dioskoroi  257. 

Sphinx;  Seilenos  225,  Euthenia  236, 
Oidipous  261. 

Spindle  or  distaff;  Ephesian  Arte¬ 


mis!  ?)  213,  Athena  217,  Klotho  238, 
Herakles  256. 

Staff;  Janus  240,  Philoktetes  263, 
Odysseus  264. 

Stag’s  horns,  having;  Aktaion  258. 

Stars ;  Dioskoroi  257. 

Stars,  crown  of;  Astraia  239. 

Statue  of  Athena,  clinging  to;  Kas¬ 
sandra  265;  tearing  her  from,  Aias 
265. 

Stork;  Pietas  244. 

Strigil;  Hermes  229. 

Stylus;  Kalliope  211. 

Sun  and  moon ;  iEternitas  242. 

Sun-dial  (polos)  ;  Artemis  212,  Atro¬ 
pos  238. 

Supports  for  hands  (  ? )  ;  Ephesian  Ar¬ 
temis  213. 

Swallow;  Aphrodite  221. 

Swan;  (in  guise  of,  Zeus  199), 
Apollo  208,  209,  Aphrodite  221, 

(with  man’s  head,  Hermes  228), 
Leda  261. 

Swimming;  Galene  227. 

Swine;  Demeter  206. 

Sword;  Zeus  (?)  201,  Melpomene  211, 
Nemesis  216,  Bacchantes  227, 
Abraxas  248,  Theseus  257,  (sickle 
shaped,  Perseus  258). 

Systrum;  Isis  247. 

Table,  sacramental,  on  head;  Astral 
genii  249. 

Tablet;  Kalliope  211. 

Tail,  having;  Seilenos  225,  Satyrs  226, 
(bird’s,  Astral  genii  249). 

Throne;  Zeus  199,  Hera  202,  Hades  205, 
Demeter  205,  Persephone  206,  Athena 
217,  Dionysos  224,  Tyche  of  Antioch 
230. 

Throne,  lion;  Cybele  232,  Syria  Dea 
233. 

Thunderbolt;  Zeus  199,  Athena  218, 
Nike  218,  Veiovis  241,  (stricken  by, 
Kapaneus  266). 

Thyrsos;  Dionysos  224,  Satyrs  226, 
Bacchantes  227,  Methe  237,  Priapos 
238. 

Tiara  or  barbaric  head-dress;  Ephesian 
Artemis  213. 

Tiger;  Dionysos  224. 

Tongs;  Hephaistos  229. 

Tongue  protruding;  Medousa  239. 

Torch;  Persephone  206,  Hestia  207, 
Artemis  Eileithyia  214,  Hekate  216, 
Ares  219,  Aphrodite  221,  Eros  222, 
Psyche  223,  (reversed,  Thanatos  235, 
wearied  Amor  ( ?)  235),  Eos  237. 


398 


LIST  OF  ATTRIBUTES 


Torches;  Demeter  205,  Artemis,  212, 
Hekate  215,  Eumenides  238. 

Torches,  raised  and  lowered;  Selene 
214,  Mithras  248. 

Tortoise;  Aphrodite  219,  221,  Pan  226, 
Hermes  229. 

Tree;  (bound  to,  Marsyas  226),  (tak¬ 
ing  golden  fleece  from,  Jason  260). 

Trident;  Poseidon  203,  Tritons  204, 
Apollo  209. 

Tripod;  Apollo  208. 

Triple  figure,  having;  Hekate  215. 

Trophy;  Nike  218,  Mars  219. 

Trumpet;  Fama  242. 

Tunny  fish;  Poseidon  204,  Apollo  209. 

Turret  crown;  Tauric  Artemis  212, 
Aphrodite  220,  Tyche  of  Antioch  230, 
Cybele  232,  Dea  Roma,  241. 


Urn;  Aphrodite  221,  Naiads  227, 
Thanatos  ( ?)  235. 

Vase;  Ephesian  Artemis (? )  213,  Aphro¬ 
dite  221,  Seilenos  225,  Satyrs  226, 
Na:ads  227,  Hermes  228,  Daktyl  ( ? ) 
233,  Thanatos  (  ?)  235,  Hebe  236,  Iris 
237,  Eos  237,  Methe  237,  Isis  247, 
Herakles  255,  Tantalos  260,  Kadmos 
260. 

Veil ;  Hera  202,  Hestia  207,  Polymnia 
211,  (draped  like  an  arch,  Selene 
214),  Concordia  242,  Fides  243. 

Victoriola;  Zeus  199,  218,  Apollo  209, 
Athena  218,  Mars  218,  219,  Fortuna 
218. 

Vultures,  preyed  on  by;  Tityos  261. 


Wheat-ears;  Zeus  (  ?)  200,  Hera  ( ?)  202, 
Demeter  205,  Persephone  206,  Trip- 
tolemos  207,  Tyche  of  Antioch  230, 
Euthenia  236,  Eirene  239,  Annona 
242,  Fides  243,  Spes  245,  Isis  247. 

Wheel;  Nemesis  216,  Tyche  230,  Ixion 
260. 

Whip;  Helios  210. 

Winged  chariot;  Triptolemos  207. 

Winged  hat  or  shoes;  Hermes  229,  (or 
helmet,  Perseus  258 ) . 

Wings,  having;  Artemis  212,  Selene 
214,  Nemesis  216,  Athena  217,  Nike 
218,  Eros  222,  (butterfly’s,  Psyche 
223),  Thanatos  235,  (Eagle’s  or  but¬ 
terfly^,  Hypnos  235),  Hebe  236,  Iris 

237,  Eos  237,  Moirai  238,  Eumenides 

238,  Medousa  239,  Eirene  239,  Genii 
246,  249,  Earth-giants  252,  Ikaros 
and  Daidalos  260. 

Wine-skin;  Seilenos  225,  Satyrs  226. 

Wolf;  Zeus  ( ?)  200,  Apollo  208,  Ar¬ 
temis  211,  Ares  219,  (being  suckled 
by,  Romulus  and  Remus  267 ) , 
(standing  near,  Faustulus  267, 
Roma  267,  Mars  267 ) . 

Woodpecker;  Ares  219. 

Wreath;  (olive,  Zeus  199,  Honos  243, 
Kassandra(?)  266),  (oak,  Zeus 
200),  (pine,  Poseidon  204,  Pan  226), 
(laurel,  Apollo  209,  Honos  243, 
Libertas  243), (ivy,  Thalia  211),  Nike 
218,  Ares  219,  (vine,  Dionysos  224, 
Bacchantes  227),  Satyrs  226, 
Nymphs  227,  (flowers,  Chloris  239). 

Wrestling;  Herakles  256,  Antaios  257. 

Yoke;  Nemesis  216. 


INDEX 

References  to  the  plates  will  be  found  on  the  pages  below  referred  to. 


Abba  Macarius,  story  of,  told  by  Pal- 
ladius,  147. 

Abbot  Samson  and  the  monks  of  St.  Ed- 
mondsbury,  story  of,  158. 
Abraxas  or  Abrasax,  on  Gnostic  gems, 
137. 

derivation  of  name,  137. 

name  added  on  earlier  gems,  146. 

how  pictured,  137,  248. 

Abundantia  (see  Euthenia) . 

Acheloos,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  73,  74. 

Early  Roman  gems,  97. 
how  pictured,  251. 
pictured  with  Herakles,  256. 
Achilleus,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 
Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89,  90. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  113,  122. 
how  pictured,  262. 

Adamas,  gems  engraved  by  use  of  dia¬ 
mond  point,  14,  271. 

Adonai,  title  of  Abraxas  god,  138. 

as  a  planetary  genius,  142. 

Adoni  (Renaissance  gem  engraver ) ,179. 
Adrasteia,  associated  with  Artemis,  Cy- 
bele  and  the  Idaian  Daktyloi, 
214. 

Adrastos,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  to  be 
identified  only  by  name,  267. 
Aegean,  meaning  of  term,  23. 

ASneas  (see  Aineias). 

ASquitas,  attributes,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  240. 

Aesculapius  ( see  Asklepios ) . 
ASternitas,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 
242. 

Agamemnon,  doubtful  on  gems,  264. 
Agate  or  onyx,  281. 

Minoan  Period,  26. 

Mycenaean  Period,  30. 

Archaie  Greek  Period,  37. 
Greek-Persian  gems,  48. 

Best  Period,  52. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  64. 

Hellenistic  Period,  78. 

Early  Roman  Period,  86,  101. 


Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 

Later  Empire,  126. 

Agathangelos  (Graeco-Roman  gems  en¬ 
graver),  121,  PI.  XX,  6. 
Agathe-Tyche,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  80. 
Agathemeros  (Graeco-Roman  gem  en¬ 
graver),  122. 

Agathodaimon,  on  Gnostic  gems,  138. 
how  represented,  138. 
derivation  of,  138. 
power  of  as  amulet,  139. 
Agathopous  (Hellenistic  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  82. 

Aias  (Ajax),  on  Archaic  Greek  gems, 
40. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  113. 
how  pictured,  265. 

Aineias  (ASneas),  on  early  Roman 
gems,  97. 

how  pictured,  266. 

Ajax  (see  Aias). 

Aktaion,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  114. 
how  pictured,  258. 

Alaric,  signet  of,  294. 

Alexander  the  Great,  portrait  to  be  cut 
only  by  Pyrgoteles,  57,  62. 
signet  of,  287. 

Alexander  of  Tralles,  subject  recom¬ 
mended  by,  159,  162. 

Allat,  identified  with  Aphrodite,  219. 
Alphabet,  Etruscan,  65. 

Pehlevi,  151. 

Amastini  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 
Amazons,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  112, 
122. 

how  pictured,  268. 
shield  of,  268. 

Ambrogio  ( Renaissance  gem  engraver ) , 
177. 

methyst,  283. 

Minoan  Period,  25. 

Mycenaean  Period,  30. 

Hellenistic  Period,  78. 

Early  Roman  Period,  96. 
Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 


399 


400 


INDEX 


Later  Empire,  126. 

used  for  Sassanian  gems,  149. 

Ammon,  identified  with  Zeus,  attribute, 

202. 

Amor  (see  Eros). 

Amphiarios,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  to  be 
identified  only  by  name,  267. 

Amphitryon,  signet  of,  286. 

Amulets,  Gnostic,  136,  137. 

Ancient  gems  regarded  as  in 
Mediaeval  Europe,  155,  162. 
opinion  of  Hippokrates  as  to,  162. 
Mediaeval,  162-169. 

Anaitis,  identified  with  Artemis,  214; 
with  Aphrodite,  219. 

Anchises,  on  early  Roman  gems,  97. 
how  pictured,  266. 

Anchor,  on  early  Christian  gems, 
127. 

Andromache,  on  early  Roman  gems, 
89,  90. 

how  pictured,  263. 

Angels,  name  of  Jewish,  on  Gnostic 
gems,  142. 

Jewish,  as  Gnostic  genii  of  con¬ 
stellations,  143. 

Anichini,  Luigi  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  176. 

Animals,  on  Minoan  gems,  25,  27. 
Mycenaean  gems,  29,  31. 
gems  of  the  Greek  Middle  Ages,  33. 
Melian  stones,  34. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  41. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  47. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  49. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  69,  74. 
Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  95,  96,  100, 
103. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  109,  114,  117. 
gems  of  Later  Empire,  125,  126. 
Sassanian  gems,  150. 

“  Annibal  ”  ( Renaissance  gem  engra¬ 

ver),  179. 

Annona,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 
242. 

Amtaios,  on  early  Roman  gems,  97. 

pictured  wrestling  with  Herakles, 
256,  257. 

Anteros  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 
122,  PI.  XX,  7. 

Anteros,  on  early  Roman  gems,  98. 

Anubis,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  119. 
on  Gnostic  gems,  140. 
with  attributes  of  Hermes  on  Ro¬ 
man  and  Gnostic  gems,  140. 


represented  as  “  Good  Shepherd  ” 
on  Gnostic  gems,  140. 
identified  with  Hermes,  228. 
how  pictured,  247. 

Aoide  (one  of  the  three  early  Muses), 

211. 

Aphrodite,  on  Mycenaean  gems?,  32. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  55. 

(Turan),  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 
on  Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  98,  102. 
(Venus),  on  Graeco-Roman  gems, 
111,  114,  122. 

on  gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  219. 
relations  with  Syria  Dea,  233. 
Apollo,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  39. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  55. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  66,  71,  74. 
Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  101. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  109.  (Saurok- 
tonos,  112),  121. 

later  identified  with  Mithras,  132. 
confused  with  Zeus,  200. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  207. 
identified  with  Veiovis,  241. 
Apollonios  (gem  engraver  of  Best  Pe¬ 
riod),  83. 

Apollonios  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  121. 

Apollonios  of  Tyana,  seven  rings  of, 
117. 

Aquamarine,  283. 

in  Hellenistic  Period,  78. 
unique  example  among  early  Ro¬ 
man  gems,  86. 
in  Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 
Archaeology,  advanced  by  the  study  of 
gems,  3. 

Areios,  signet  of,  288. 

Ares,  on  Mycenaean  gems,  32. 

(Mars),  on  early  Roman  gems,  94, 

102. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  111,  113, 
114. 

gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  218. 

Argos  (dog),  on  early  Roman  gems, 
89. 

Argos,  on  early  Roman  gems,  92. 

how  pictured,  260. 

Ariadne,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 
perhaps  identified  with  Artemis, 
213;  with  Aphrodite,  219. 


INDEX 


401 


sometimes  pictured  with  Dionysos, 
224. 

Armor,  Greek,  pictured  on  Etruscan 
scarabs,  70. 

both  Greek  and  Italian  style  on 
early  Roman  gems,  90,  91. 

Arms  or  armor,  pictured  on  Minoan 
gems,  28. 

Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  100,  104. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  114,  117. 

Artemis,  on  Minoan  gems?,  28,  PI.  I,  5. 
Mycenaean  gems?,  32. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  39. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  74. 

Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

(Diana)  on  Early  Roman  gems,  98, 

101. 

on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  111,  (of 
Ephesos,  112),  114,  121. 
on  gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  211. 
of  Ephesos,  213. 
relations  with  Syria  Dea,  233. 

Artificers,  on  early  Roman  gems,  91. 

Artists,  of  Archaic  Period,  43. 

Best  Period,  59. 

Hellenistic  Period,  81. 
Graeco-Roman,  120,  (disputes  as  to 
genuineness  of  names,  123). 

Abba  Macarius,  147. 
of  the  Renaissance,  173-180. 
of  modern  times,  183-196. 

Artists’  signatures,  18. 

in  nominative  or  genitive  case, 
61. 

Aschari,  M.  (modem  gem  engraver), 
183. 

Askanios,  how  pictured,  266. 

Asklepios  (iEsculapius),  attributes, 
cults,  affiliations  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  231. 

Asp,  on  Gnostic  gems,  141. 

Aspasios  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 
121,  PI.  XX,  9,  13. 

Astaphai,  as  a  planetary  genius,  143. 

Astarte,  identified  with  Artemis,  214; 
with  Aphrodite,  219. 

Astraia  ( Dike )  ( one  of  the  Horai ) ,  at¬ 
tributes  and  how  pictured,  239. 

Astral  Powers  ( see  Genii ) . 

Astronomical  picture  on  gem  of  Best 
Period,  58. 

Astronomical  or  astrological  signs,  on 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  115,  117. 
on  gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 


relations  between  special  deities 
and  the  Zodiac,  117. 
on  Mithraic  gems,  133. 
cyphers  on  imitations  of  Gnostic 
gems,  137. 

on  Sassanian  gems,  150. 
on  Mediaeval  gems,  168. 

Atalante,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 
identified  with  Artemis,  214. 
how  pictured,  259. 

Atargatis,  identified  with  Artemis,  214; 
with  Aphrodite,  219;  with  Syria 
Dea,  233. 

Athena,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  39,  40. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  66,  67,  69,  70. 
Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

(Minerva)  on  early  Roman  gems, 
98. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  109,  111, 
(Parthenos,  Promachos  and 
of  Lemnos,  112),  114,  121. 
gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  216. 
perhaps  related  in  some  cults 
with  Aphrodite,  219. 
relations  with  Syria  Dea,  233. 

Atheneon  (Hellenistic  gem  engraver), 
83. 

Athenion,  signet  of,  288. 

Athletes,  on  Minoan  gems,  27. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  42. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 

Early  Roman  gems,  97. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  113,  122. 

Athor,  as  Venus  on  Gnostic  gems,  141. 

Atropos  (one  of  the  Fates),  how  pic¬ 
tured,  238. 

Attar,  identified  with  Aphrodite,  219. 

Augustus,  signets  of,  291. 

Aulus  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 
122,  PL  XX,  10;  XXI,  2. 

Aurora  (see  Eos). 

Avanzi,  Nicolo  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  174. 

Baal  of  Doliche,  identified  with  Zeus, 
attributes,  202. 

Baboon,  sacred  to  Thoth,  on  Gnostic 
gems,  140,  247. 

Bacchantes  ( see  Mainads ) . 

Bacchus  ( see  Dionysos ) . 

Band  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Banquet  scenes,  on  Hellenistic  gems, 
81. 

Barbatus,  Lucius  Scipio,  signet  of,  6, 
289. 


402 


INDEX 


Barier,  F.  J.  (modern  gem  engraver), 
184. 

Barnett,  W.  (modern  gem  engraver), 
188. 

Base  ornamentation,  on  Etruscan  scar¬ 
abs,  63. 

Basileides,  Gnostic  philosopher,  135, 
138. 

Bassi  (modern  gem  engraver),  193. 

Battle  of  Fontenoy,  by  Guay,  184. 

Battos,  King  of  Kyrene,  signet  of,  287. 

Becker  (modern  gem  engraver),  184. 

Beetle,  on  Gnostic  gems,  140. 

Bel  (Bel  Khamon),  on  Phoenician  and 
Carthaginian  scarabs,  45. 

Belit,  identified  with  Aphrodite,  219. 

Bellerophon,  on  early  Roman  gems,  89. 

how  pictured,  258. 

Belli,  Valerio  dei  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  175,  PI.  XXXI,  12. 

Belus  mounted  on  a  lion,  on  Gnostic 
gems,  141. 

Bemfleet  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Benedetti,  Matteo  dei  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  175. 

Bendis,  identified  with  Artemis,  213. 

Berry  (modem  gem  engraver),  188. 

Beryl,  283. 

Hellenistic  Period,  78. 

Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 

Besa,  on  Phoenician  and  Carthaginian 
scarabs.  46. 

how  pictured,  249. 

Bible,  subjects  taken  from,  on  early 
Christian  gems,  129. 

Byzantine  gems,  148. 

Sassanian  Christian  gems,  152. 

Mediaeval  gems,  159. 

Birago,  Clement  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  177. 

Bloodstone  (Heliotrope),  281. 

Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 

Later  Empire,  125. 

used  for  Mithraie  gems,  132. 

used  for  Gnostic  gems,  136. 

used  for  Sassanian  gems,  149. 

Boethos  (Hellenistic  gem  engraver), 
83. 

Bonus  Eventus,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems, 
113. 

( See  Triptolemos. ) 

Border,  cartouch  groove  on  Minoan 
gems,  24,  25. 

Archaic  Greek  Period,  37. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  a  line,  45. 

Best  Period,  52. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  64. 


Hellenistic  gems,  79. 

Early  Roman  gems,  86,  96,  101. 

serpent  with  tail  in  mouth,  on 
Gnostic  gems,  141. 

Borghigiani,  Francesco  ( modern  gem  en¬ 
graver),  184. 

Bragg  (modem  gem  engraver ) ,  188. 

Brett  (modern  gem  engraver),  193. 

“  Briosco  Crispo  ”  ( modern  gem  en¬ 

graver),  184. 

Britomartis,  identified  with  Artemis, 
213. 

Brown,  C.  and  W.  (modern  gem  en¬ 
gravers),  186. 

Bull,  or  bull’s  head  in  lion’s  jaws,  on 
Mithraie  gems,  133. 

Burch,  R.  A.  and  E.  B.  F.  (modern 
gem  engravers),  188. 

Burgognone  (Renaissance  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  179. 

Bust,  first  pictured  in  Hellenistic  Pe¬ 
riod  instead  of  merely  the  head 
and  neck,  79. 

Butterfly,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  67. 

Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  98,  102,  103. 

Psyche  pictured  as,  223. 

Button-shaped  gems,  Minoan,  26. 

Cades,  Tomaso  (modern  gem  engraver), 
191,  PI.  XXXII,  20. 

Cades  casts,  195. 

Caesar,  Julius,  signet  of,  6,  291. 

Calabresi,  D.  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  179. 

Calandrelli  (modern  gem  engraver), 
191,  PI.  XXXII,  19. 

Callings  and  occupations,  gems  il¬ 
lustrating,  early  Roman,  97. 

Graeco-Roman,  114. 

Later  Empire,  126. 

Cameos,  2. 

popular  in  Renaissance,  2,  171. 

Camillo  di  Leonardo,  lapidaria  pub¬ 
lished  by,  162. 

on  trines,  168. 

on  artists  of  15th  Centusy,  175. 

Campagni,  Dominico  dei  Camei  ( Re¬ 
naissance  gem  engraver),  174. 

Cancer,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  117. 

Canopic  vase,  on  Gnostic  gems,  139. 

Capperoni  ( modern  gem  engraver ) ,  188. 

Capricornus,  on  early  Roman  gems,  95, 
99,  101. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  117. 

birth  sign  of  Augustus,  118. 

Caradosso,  Foppa  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  175. 


INDEX 


403 


Caraglio,  Giovanni  Giacomo  (Renais¬ 
sance  gem  engraver),  177. 
Carnelian,  278. 

Minoan  Period,  25. 

Mycenaean  Period,  30. 

Archaic  Greek  Period,  37. 
Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  45. 

Best  Period,  52. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  64. 

Hellenistic  Period,  78. 

Early  Roman  gems,  86,  96. 
Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 

Later  Empire,  125,  137. 
used  rarely  for  Gnostic  gems,  137. 
used  for  Sassanian  gems,  149. 
used  for  Mohammedan  gems,  154. 
used  in  Mediaeval  times,  161. 
used  in  Renaissance,  174,  176. 
Carniole,  Giovanni  delle  ( Renaissance 
gem  engraver),  174. 

Prospero  delle  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  174. 

Carrioni  (Renaissance  gem  engraver), 
179. 

Castel  Bolognese,  Giovanni  del  (Renais¬ 
sance  gem  engraver),  175. 
Castrucci  (Renaissance  gem  engraver), 
179. 

Casts,  the  Cades,  195. 

Cave,  Joseph  (modem  gem  engraver )  ,188. 
Cavini,  Giovanni  (modern  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  184. 

Cellini,  Benvenuto,  perhaps  engraved 
gems,  174. 

Centaur,  on  Melian  stones,  35. 
Archaic  Greek  gems,  41. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  74. 
how  pictured,  250. 

Cerbara  (modern  gem  engraver),  191. 
Cerberus  ( see  Kerberos ) . 

Ceres  ( see  Demeter ) . 

Cesati,  Alessandro  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  176. 

Chael,  reputed  author  of  lapidaria,  162. 
Chalcedony,  279. 

Minoan  Period,  25. 

Mycenaean  Period,  30. 

Archaic  Greek  Period,  37. 
Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  45. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  48. 

Best  Period,  52. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  64. 

Hellenistic  Period,  78. 

Early  Roman  gems,  86,  96. 
Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 


Later  Empire,  125. 

used  for  Sassanian  gems,  149. 

Chariots,  on  Minoan  gems,  27. 
Mycenaean  gems,  31. 

Melian  stones,  35. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  41,  42. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  55,  57. 
Etruscan  scarabs,  74. 

Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  97,  101. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  113,  116,  122. 

Charities,  the,  how  represented,  221. 

Charms  (luck-bringing  or  fate-com¬ 
pelling  inscriptions)  on  early 
Christian  gems,  130;  on  Gnostic 
gems,  136,  142-146. 

Cheiron,  on  early  Roman  gems,  89. 
as  tutor  of  Achilleus,  &c.,  250. 

Chiavanni  (Renaissance  gem  engraver), 
179. 

Children,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 
on  Sassanian  gems,  150. 

Chimaira,  on  Melian  stones,  35. 
on  gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 
on  Etruscan  scarabs,  74. 
how  pictured,  251. 
with  Bellerophon,  258. 

Chloris  ( Flora )  ( one  of  the  Horai ) ,  at¬ 
tributes  and  how  pictured,  239. 

Chnubis  or  Chnumis,  on  Gnostic  gems, 
138. 

how  pictured,  138,  248. 
derivation  of,  138. 
power  of  as  amulet,  139. 

Chrisma,  on  early  Christian  gems,  128. 

Christ,  shown  as  “  Good  Shepherd  ”  on 
early  Christian  gems,  129. 
pictured  on  early  Christian  gems, 
129,  131. 

on  Byzantine  gems,  129,  148. 
portrait  of,  on  Sassanian  Christian 
gems,  152. 

pictured  on  Mediaeval  gems,  PI. 
XXX  8?,  10,  11. 

Chrysoprase,  280. 

Church  plate  and  shrines  ornamented 
with  ancient  gems,  156. 

Ciapponi,  Francesco  (modern  gem  en¬ 
graver),  195. 

Cicada  engaged  in  human  acts,  on  early 
Roman  gems,  104. 

Cicada-seiren,  on  gems  of  Best  Period, 
57. 

Circus,  pictures  from,  on  Graeco-Roman 
gems,  116. 

on  gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 

Clasped  hands,  “  fedi,”  cut  in  Renais¬ 
sance,  179. 


404 


INDEX 


attribute  of  Fides,  243. 
holding  a  wheat-ear,  symbol  of 
Conf  arreatio,  118. 

Classical  pictures,  popular  on  Renais¬ 
sance  gems,  172,  175,  176,  177, 
179,  180,  PI.  XXX,  XXXI. 
on  modern  gems,  183,  185,  186,  187, 
189,  191,  194,  PI.  XXXII. 

Claus  (modern  gem  engraver),  183. 

Clothing,  bell-shaped  skirts  on  Minoan 
gems,  28. 

on  Mycenaean  gems,  31. 
how  indicated  on  Archaic  Greek 
gems,  38. 

on  Phoenician  and  Carthaginian 
scarabs,  45. 

costumes  characteristically  Persian 
on  Greek-Persian  gems,  50. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  55,  56. 
Etruscan  scarabs,  69,  71,  72. 
Hellenistic  gems,  80,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  87. 
floating  or  transparent  drapery 
well  rendered  on  Graeco-Roman 
gems,  110. 

floating  drapery  on  Sassanian 
gems,  149. 

Cneph,  Chnuphis,  Chnumis  and  Chnu- 
bis,  names  of  the  Agathodaimon, 
138. 

Cock  on  ship,  on  early  Christian  gems, 
128. 

Coldore,  Olivier  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  178. 

Collecting,  romance  of,  5. 

revived  in  the  Renaissance,  171. 
became  a  mania  in  18th  Century, 
181. 

Collections  and  collectors,  V,  4,  105, 
171,  173,  181,  183. 

Baron  Stoseh,  181. 

Prince  Poniatowski,  191. 

Combined  types  of  deities,  on  early 
Roman  gems,  99,  102,  103. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  112,  119. 
gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
Oriental-Roman,  246. 

Commodus,  signet  of,  292. 

Comnenus,  signet  of,  293. 

Concordia,  attributes,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  242. 

Exercitium,  245. 

Conf  arreatio,  symbol  of,  118. 

Conical  seals,  Asiatic,  2. 

Minoan,  26. 

Mycenaean,  30. 

in  Greek  Middle  Ages,  33. 

Melian  stones,  34. 


Greek  of  Best  Period,  52. 
Hellenistic,  77. 

Constantius  II,  signet  of,  6,  127,  293. 
Costanzi,  Carlo  and  Giovanni  (modern 
gem  engravers),  185. 

Crane  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 
Cross,  on  Minoan  gems,  28. 

Hellenistic  scarabs,  77. 

Early  Christian  gems,  127,  128. 
Sassanian  Christian  gems,  152. 
Cult  scenes,  on  Minoan  gems,  28. 
Mycenaean  gems,  31. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  42. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  74. 

Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  92,  104. 

Cupid  (see  Eros). 

Curtius,  Marcus,  on  Early  Roman 
gems,  97. 
how  pictured,  268. 

Cybele  (see  Rhea  and  Kubele). 
Cyclopes,  on  Early  Roman  gems?,  91. 
Cylinders,  Asiatic,  1. 

origin  of  the  form,  2. 

Egyptian,  2. 

Melian  stones,  34. 

Greek-Persian,  48. 

Greek  of  Best  Period,  52. 
Cynocephalus  baboon,  on  Gnostic  gems, 
140. 

Dagon,  on  Phoenician  and  Carthaginian 
scarabs?,  47. 

Daidalos,  on  Early  Roman  gems,  91. 
how  pictured,  260. 

Daidalos  (Hellenistic  gem  engraver), 
82. 

Daktyloi,  attributes,  cults,  affiliations 
and  how  pictured,  233. 
on  Early  Roman  gems,  91. 

Dalion  ( Grseco-Roman  gem  engraver), 
122 

Danae,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 
how  pictured,  259. 

Dea  Roma,  attributes,  cults,  affiliations 
and  how  pictured,  241. 

Deane  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 
Death’s-heads,  on  Early  Roman  gems, 
103. 

Decani,  planetary  genii  representing?, 
140. 

Decorative  designs,  on  Minoan  gems, 
25,  28. 

Mycenaean  gems,  31. 
gems  of  the  Greek  Middle  Ages,  33. 
Melian  stones,  35,  PI.  Ill,  173. 
Delphic  E,  a  Gnostic  sacred  numeral 
standing  for  five,  142,  145. 


INDEX 


405 


Demeter,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

(Ceres),  on  Grseco-Roman  gems, 
109. 

on  gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  205. 

Demons  ( see  Monsters ) . 

Demophoon  (see  Triptolemos) . 

Deries  (Renaissance  gem  engraver), 
179. 

Derketo,  identified  with  Artemis,  214; 
with  Aphrodite,  219. 

Descriptive  inscriptions,  on  Archaic 
Greek  gems,  43. 

gems  of  Best  Period,  58. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  65,  70,  71,  72. 

Early  Roman  gems,  95. 

Grseco-Roman  gems,  120. 

gems  of  Later  Empire,  127. 

Early  Christian  gems,  130. 

Designs,  on  ancient  gems,  16. 

Dexamenos  (gem  engraver  of  Best 
Period),  59,  PI.  VII,  1. 

Dia  ( see  Hebe ) . 

Diadumenos,  on  Grseco-Roman  gems, 

112. 

Diamond,  first  engraved  by  Jacopo  da 
Trezzo  or  Clement  Birago,  177; 
engraved  by  Jacobus  Thronius, 
177. 

Diamond-point,  Ancient  gems  engraved 
by,  14,  271,  272. 

engraving  as  evidence  of  antiquity, 
272. 

used  in  modern  forgeries,  272. 

preliminary  sketch  made  with,  274. 

Diana  ( see  Artemis ) . 

Diana  Nemorensis,  on  early  Roman 
gems,  92. 

Dianus  (see  Virbius). 

Dictymia,  identified  with  Artemis,  213. 

Dies  (modern  gem  engraver),  191. 

Dike  ( see  Astraia ) . 

Diodotos  (Grseco-Roman  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  123. 

Diomedes  (adversary  of  Herakles),  on 
Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 

how  pictured,  264. 

Diomedes  (Trojan  War  Cycle),  on  gems 
of  Best  Period,  56. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89,  97. 

Grseco-Roman  gems,  113,  120,  121, 

122. 

how  pictured,  264. 

Dione,  mother  of  Aphrodite,  220. 

Dionysos,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  66, 
69. 

Hellenistic  gems,  80. 


(Bacchus,  Liber),  on  early  Roman 
gems,  98,  101,  102. 
Grseco-Roman  gems,  111,  121. 
gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
confused  with  Zeus,  200. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  223. 

Dioskoroi,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40, 
43. 

gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Grseco-Roman  gems,  114. 

attributes  and  how  pictured,  257. 

Dioskourides  (Grseco-Roman  gem  en¬ 
graver),  121,  PL  XX,  2,  5. 

Dis  (see  Hades). 

Discobolos,  on  Grseco-Roman  gems,  113. 

Disc-shaped  gems,  Greek  Middle  Ages, 
33. 

Archaic  Greek  Period,  37. 

Dius  Fidius,  relations  with  Herakles, 
255. 

Dog,  on  Mithraic  gems,  133. 

Dolon,  on  early  Roman  gems,  89. 

Dordoni,  Antonio  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  178. 

Dorseh,  Johann  Christopher  (modern 
gem  engraver),  184;  daughters 
of,  also  engraved  gems,  184. 

Doryphoros,  on  Grseco-Roman  gems, 

112. 

Dove,  on  early  Christian  gems,  128. 

Dragons,  on  Melian  stones,  35. 

Drill,  used  in  gem  engraving,  272, 
273. 

Dwarf,  on  early  Roman  gems,  99. 

Eagle  between  standards,  on  Grseco-Ro¬ 
man  gems,  114. 

Earth-giants,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  67, 
68,  70. 

Early  Roman  gems,  97. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  114. 

how  pictured,  252. 

Egg  of  the  World,  Orphic,  on  Gnostic 
gems,  146. 

Egyptian,  motives,  on  Minoan  gems,  25, 
26,  28. 

deities,  on  Grseco-Roman  gems,  119. 
on  imitations  of  Gnostic  gems, 
137. 

on  Gnostic  gems,  140. 

Eileithyia,  identified  with  Artemis,  214. 

Eirene  ( Pax )  ( one  of  the  Horai ) ,  at¬ 
tributes  and  how  pictured,  239. 

Elektra,  on  early  Roman  gems,  89. 

how  pictured,  259. 

Eloi,  as  a  planetary  genius,  142. 

Emerald,  in  Grseco-Roman  Period,  108. 


406 


INDEX 


rarely  used  in  Ancient  times,  277. 
ancient  name  of,  278. 

Engelhart,  Heinrich  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  175. 

Engraving  of  gems,  by  sharp  point  of 
harder  substance,  271. 
diamond-point  used  for,  272,  273, 
274. 

drill  used  for,  272,  273. 
by  the  wheel,  273. 

Naxian  powder  used  for,  273. 
turning  mechanism  used  in,  274. 
lens  used  in,  275. 
polishing,  276. 

Eos  (Aurora),  attributes  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  237. 

Ephesian  Artemis,  213. 

Epic  cycles,  characters  and  pictures 
from,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  68,  70,  74. 
Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  88,  90,  97. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  113,  120,  121, 
122. 

gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
Epicureanism,  voiced  on  early  Roman 
gems,  103. 

Epimenes  (Archaic  Greek  gem  en¬ 
graver),  44. 

Epitynchanos  (Graeco-Roman  gem  en¬ 
graver),  123. 

EratS  (Muse),  how  pictured,  211. 
Erinyes  (see  Eumenides). 

Eros,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  41. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs?,  47. 

gems  of  Best  Period,  55. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  67. 

(Cupid),  on  Hellenistic  gems,  80. 
Early  Roman  gems,  98,  99,  101, 
102. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  111,  113, 
114,  122. 

believed  to  be  the  figure  of  an 
angel  in  Mediaeval  times,  159. 
common  subject  in  Renaissance, 
172. 

attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  222. 

Eteokles,  how  pictured,  267. 
Ethiopians,  gems  of,  how  engraved,  271. 

arrow-heads  of,  271. 

Etruscan,  alphabet,  66. 
deities,  67. 

spelling  of  Greek  hero  names,  254. 
Eumenides  (Erinyes),  some  association 
with  Aphrodite,  219. 


attributes  and  how  pictured,  238. 

Eunomia  (one  of  the  Horai),  239. 

Europe,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  see  PI.  XXVI, 
17. 

perhaps  identified  with  Artemis, 
213;  with  Aphrodite,  219;  with 
Gaia,  234. 

Euterpe  (Muse),  how  pictured,  211. 

Euthenia  (Abundantia),  attributes, 
cults  and  how  pictured,  236. 

Eutyches  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  121. 

Evodos  ( Graeco- Roman  gem  engraver), 
123,  PI.  XX,  11. 

portrait  of  Julia  by,  preserved  in 
the  Tresor  de  St.  Denys,  156. 

Exergue,  Archaic  Greek  Period,  38. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  45. 

Etruscan  scarabs.  64. 

Early  Roman  gems,  86. 

Eye,  characteristically  rendered  on  Hel¬ 
lenistic  gems,  78. 

Fabii,  F.  M.  (modern  gem  engraver), 
184. 

Fama,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 

242. 

Fatalists,  great  names  according  to, 
143. 

Fates  (seeMoirai). 

Faunus  (see  Pan),  226. 

Faustulus,  on  early  Roman  gems,  94. 

how  pictured,  267. 

Felieitas,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 

243. 

Felix  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 

122. 

Female  figures,  with  bell  skirts,  on 
Minoan  gems,  28;  on  Mycenaean 
gems,  31. 

costumes  of,  on  Greek-Persian  gems, 
50. 

on  gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Fides,  attributes  and  how  pictured,  242. 

Cohortium,  245. 

Fights,  on  Minoan  gems,  27. 

Mycenaean  gems,  31. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  49. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  68,  74. 

Early  Roman  gems,  90. 

Fire  altar,  on  Sassanian  gems,  149, 
150. 

Fish,  on  early  Christian  gems,  128. 

Sassanian  Christian  gems,  152. 

Fisherman,  on  early  Christian  gems, 
128. 


INDEX 


407 


Flora,  Pistrucci’s,  story  of,  190. 

(See  Chloris.) 

Flowers,  on  Minoan  gems,  27. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  42. 

Sassanian  gems,  150. 

Mohammedan  gems,  154. 

Fontana,  Annibale  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  177. 

Fontenay,  Julian  de  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  178. 

Foppa  Caradosso  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  175. 

Forgeries,  lines  of  detection,  8. 

Mycenaean  and  Archaic  Greek 
gems,  32. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  74. 

Romulus  and  Remus  picture,  94. 
historical  scenes,  195. 

Early  Christian  gems,  131. 

Gnostic  gems,  137,  145. 

Sassanian  gems,  152. 

Renaissance,  on  lapis  lazulis,  126, 
180. 

modern  times,  181,  182,  183,  185, 
187,  189-195. 

Poniatowski,  191. 
in  the  East,  194. 

Forgeries  of  artists’  signatures,  177, 
181,  192. 

Fortuna  ( see  Tyche ) . 

Francia,  the  painter,  probably  a  gem 
engraver,  175. 

Fraser  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 
Frewin  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 
Frog,  on  early  Christian  gems,  128. 
Furies  ( see  Eumenides ) . 

Fumius  di  Bologna  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  175. 

Gaia  (Tellus),  attributes,  cults,  affilia¬ 
tions  and  how  pictured,  234. 
Gaius  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 
121. 

Galba,  signet  of,  292. 

Galene,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  80. 
how  pictured,  227. 

Gallic  shield,  on  Etruscan  scarabs, 
74. 

Ganymeda  ( see  Hebe ) . 

Ganymedes,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  58. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  114. 
attributes  and  how  pictured,  237. 
Garanus,  relations  with  Herakles,  255. 
Garnet,  284. 

Hellenistic  Period,  78. 
Graeco-Roman  Period,  108,  109. 
Later  Empire,  126. 
used  for  Sassanian  gems,  149. 


Gasparini  ( Renaissance  gem  engraver ) , 
179. 

Gauls,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  97. 

Gelon  (Hellenistic  gem  engraver),  82. 

Gemini,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  117. 

Genii,  on  early  Roman  gems,  92,  103. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  see  PI.  XXIII, 
9;  XXIV,  16. 

attributes  and  how  pictured,  246. 

planetary,  on  Gnostic  gems,  139; 
explanation  of,  140,  141 ;  forms 
of,  140,  249;  names  of,  140,  141, 
142,  144. 

Genre  types,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  97,  100. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  114. 

gems  of  Later  Empire,  125,  126. 

Genuineness,  indications  of,  11. 

Geometrical  figures,  on  gems  of  Greek 
Middle  Ages,  33. 

on  Gnostic  gems,  146. 

Georgio  (Renaissance  gem  engraver), 
177. 

Ghingi,  F.  (modern  gem  engraver),  184. 

Giaffiere  (Renaissance  gem  engraver), 
179. 

Giants  (see  Earth-giants) . 

Ginganelli  (modern  gem  engraver),  191. 

Giovanni  Maria  da  Mantova  (Renais¬ 
sance  gem  engraver),  174. 

delle  Carniole  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  174. 

del  Castel  Bolognese  (Renaissance 
gem  engraver),  175. 

Girardet,  Enrico  (modern  gem  en¬ 
graver),  195. 

Girometti  (modern  gem  engraver),  191. 

Glandular  gems,  Minoan,  26. 

Mycenaean,  30. 

Melian  stones,  34. 

Glass  pastes,  Mycenaean,  30. 

Archaic  Greek,  37. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs  in,  45. 

Greek-Persian,  48. 

in  Best  Period,  52. 

Etruscan  scarabs  in,  64. 

Hellenistic,  78. 

Early  Roman,  86,  96. 

Graeco-Roman,  109. 

Glaukos,  on  early  Roman  gems,  93. 

how  pictured,  235. 

Gloria  Exercitus,  245. 

Romanorum,  245. 

Saeculi,  245. 

Gnaeus  ( Graeco- Roman  gem  engraver), 
122,  PI.  XX,  1,  4;  XXI,  1. 


408 


INDEX 


Gnome,  on  early  Roman  gems,  99. 
Gnostic  gems,  first  appearance,  120. 

ideas  involved  in,  136. 

Gnostic,  inscriptions,  136,  142,  146. 
sects,  143. 
genii  (see  Genii). 

Gnosticism,  character  of,  134. 

elements  going  to  make  up,  135. 
principal  leaders  of,  135. 

Gods  (greater),  on  Minoan  gems,  28. 
Mycenaean  gems,  32. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  39,  41. 
Pythagoreans  forbidden  to  wear, 
*43. 

on  Phoenician  and  Carthaginian 
scarabs,  45. 

gems  of  the  Best  Period,  55. 
Etruscan  scarabs,  66,  68,  69,  71, 
74. 

Hellenistic  gems,  80. 
censure  by  Ateius  Capito  on  wear¬ 
ing,  88. 

on  early  Roman  gems,  88,  89,  92, 
93,  98,  101,  102,  103. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  109,  111. 
gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 

Goethe,  remarks  about  gems,  VI. 

Good  wishes  inscriptions,  on  gems  of 
the  Best  Period,  58. 

Early  Roman  gems,  102. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  120. 

Early  Christian  gems,  130. 

Good  Shepherd,  on  early  Christian 
gems,  129. 

Anubis  represented  as,  on  Gnostic 
gems,  140. 

Gorgons,  on  Melian  stones,  35. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 

(See  Medousa. ) 

Graaft,  Gottfried  (modern  gem  en¬ 
graver),  185. 

Graces,  how  represented,  221. 
Grasshopper  ( see  Cicada ) . 

“Greco  II”  (Renaissance  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  176,  PI.  XXX,  13. 

Grew  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 
Griffin,  on  Minoan  gems?,  28. 
Mycenaean  gems,  32. 

Melian  stones,  35. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  41. 
Greek-Persian  gems,  49. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  114. 

Sassanian  gems,  150. 
how  pictured,  250. 

Grotesques,  on  early  Roman  gems,  99, 
104. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  115. 


Grylli,  combinations  similar  to,  on 
Archaic  Greek  gems,  41. 
Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  47. 

Early  Roman  gems,  99,  104. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  118. 
derivation  of  word,  118. 
composition  of,  119. 
on  gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 

Guay,  Jacques  (modern  gem  engraver), 
184. 

Hades  (Plouto),  on  gems  of  Best 
Period,  56. 

on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  114. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  204. 

Hadrian,  signet  of,  292. 

Hair,  freely  rendered  on  Mycenaean 
gems,  31;  on  Melian  stones,  35. 
how  rendered  on  Archaic  Greek 
gems,  38;  on  Phoenician  and 
Carthaginian  scarabs,  45 ;  on 
Etruscan  scarabs,  70,  71,  72;  on 
Hellenistic  gems,  78;  on  early 
Roman  gems,  87,  88,  102;  on 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  110. 
women’s,  how  arranged  on  Greek- 
Persian  gems.  50. 

elaborately  dressed  in  Sassanian 
portraits,  150. 

Handle  signet  shapes,  Minoan,  26. 
in  Greek  Middle  Ages,  33. 

Harmonia,  perhaps  identified  with 
Aphrodite,  219. 

mother  of  Aphrodite  Urania,  220. 

Harpies,  how  pictured,  251. 

Harpokrates,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  80. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  119. 

(Horus),  attributes  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  247. 

Harris  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Head  in  hand  of  warrior,  on  Early  Ro¬ 
man  gems,  90. 

rising  from  ground,  on  Early  Ro¬ 
man  gems,  93. 

Heads,  pictured  on  Archaic  Greek  gems, 
42. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  47. 

gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  69. 

Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  99,  101,  105. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  113. 

Hebe  (Juventas),  attributes,  cults,  af¬ 
filiations  and  how  pictured,  236. 

Hecker  (modern  gem  engraver?),  184. 


INDEX 


409 


Hekate,  on  Gnostic  gems,  141. 

attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  215. 

Hektor,  on  early  Roman  gems,  89,  90. 

how  pictured,  263. 

Helios,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  114. 

attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  210. 

Heliotrope  ( see  Bloodstone ) . 

Helmets,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  90,  104. 
in  hand  of  Venus  Victrix,  221. 
Hematite,  284. 

Minoan  Period,  25. 

Mycenaean  Period,  30. 

Archaic  Greek  Period  and  later,  37. 
Later  Roman  Empire,  126. 
used  for  Gnostic  gems,  126,  136. 
used  for  Sassanian  gems,  149. 
Hemispherical  gems,  Mycenaean  Period?, 
30. 

Greek  Middle  Ages,  33. 

Melian  stones,  34. 

Archaic  Greek  Period,  37. 
Greek-Persian,  48. 

Greek  of  Best  Period,  52. 
modified  forms  of,  in  Sassanian 
gems,  149. 

Mohammedan,  154. 

Hephaistos  (Vulcan), on  Etruscan  scar¬ 
abs,  67,  71. 

attributes  and  how  pictured,  229. 
Heptad,  how  represented  on  Gnostic 
gems,  145. 

Hera  ( Juno),  on  early  Roman  gems,  98. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  202. 
relations  with  Syria  Dea,  233. 
Herakleidas  (Hellenistic  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  82. 

Herakles,  on  Melian  stones,  35. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 

(Melkart)  on  Phoenician  and  Car¬ 
thaginian  scarabs,  46,  47. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  68,  73. 
Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89,  97. 
(Hercules)  on  Graeco-Roman  gems, 
111,  112,  114,  121,  122. 
recommended  by  Alexander  of 
Tralles,  162. 
husband  of  Hebe,  236. 
attributes,  affiliations  and  how 
represented,  254. 
labors  of,  255. 

Heraldic  groupings,  on  Minoan  gems, 
28. 


Mycenaean  gems,  31. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  39,  41. 

Hercules  ( see  Herakles ) . 

Hermaphrodite,  idea  foreshadowed  on 
Archaic  Greek  gems?,  39. 
on  gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 
Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  111. 
attributes  and  how  pictured,  241. 

Hermes,  of  Praxiteles,  5. 

on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  39. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  67,  69,  71. 
Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89  (Psycho- 
pompos,  93),  99. 

(Mercury),  on  Graeco-Roman  gems, 
112, ‘  114,  121. 

gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
Gnostic  gems,  141. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  228. 

Herms,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 
Early  Roman  gems,  92,  98,  99,  102, 
103. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  114,  121. 

Heroes,  on  Melian  stones,  35. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  67,  70,  71,  74. 
Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  88,  90,  97. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  111,  112,  113, 
114,  120,  121,  122. 
rare  on  gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
sometimes  difficult  to  identify,  253. 
Etruscan  spelling  of  Greek  names 
of,  254. 

Herophilos  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  121. 

Hestia  ( Vesta ) ,  attributes  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  207. 

Hieroglyphics,  on  Minoan  gems,  25,  26, 
27. 

Hilaritas,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 
243. 

Hill  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Hills,  J.  (modem  gem  engraver), 
188. 

Hippodameia,  perhaps  identified  with 
Aphrodite,  219. 

Hippokamps,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems, 
41. 

how  pictured,  250. 

Hippokrates,  opinion  as  to  amulets, 
162. 

Hippolectryon,  in  Graeco-Roman  grylli, 
119. 


410 


INDEX 


Historical  scenes,  on  early  Roman  gems, 
91,  94. 

Renaissance  gems,  176. 

Holland  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Honos,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 
243. 

Horai,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  111. 
names  of,  how  pictured,  239. 

Horatii,  on  early  Roman  gems,  91. 
how  pictured,  268. 

Horoscopes,  influence  of  astronomical 
signs  on,  169. 

Horsemen,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  42. 
Greek-Persian  gems,  49. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  74. 

Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  90,  97. 

Horus,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  119. 
Gnostic  gems,  140. 
in  arms  of  Isis  believed,  in  Me¬ 
diaeval  times,  to  be  infant  Christ 
in  arms  of  the  Virgin,  159. 

(See  Harpokrates. ) 

Hours  (see  Horai). 

Human  figures,  on  Minoan  gems,  24; 
wasp-waisted,  27. 
on  Mycenaean  gems,  29;  how  rep¬ 
resented,  31;  wasp-waisted,  31. 
on  gems  of  Greek  Middle  Ages,  33. 
on  Melian  stones,  35. 
how  represented  in  Archaic  Greek 
Period,  38,  39,  42. 
on  Phoenician  and  Carthaginian 
scarabs,  47. 

how  represented  in  Best  Period,  53, 
57. 

on  Etruscan  scarabs,  69,  70,  71, 
72,  74. 

in  Hellenistic  Period,  78. 
on  early  Roman  gems  under 
Etruscan  influence,  87 ;  under 
Hellenistic  influence,  96,  97 ; 
under  combining  influences, 
101. 

Human  sacrifice,  characteristic  in  most 
old  Italian  cults,  91. 

Humorous  conceptions,  on  early  Roman 
gems,  99. 

Hunting  scenes,  on  Minoan  gems,  27. 
Mycenaean  gems,  31. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  42. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  47. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  49. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  58. 

Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  97. 


Sassanian  gems,  150. 

Hyakinthos  ( Hyacinthus ) ,  on  Etruscan 
scarabs,  68. 
how  pictured,  259. 

Hydaspes,  King  of  Ethiopia,  ring  given 
by,  to  Charikleia,  288. 

Hygeia,  attributes,  affiliation  and  how 
pictured,  231. 

Hyllos  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 
121,  PI.  XX,  3,  14. 

Hypnos,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  67. 

Early  Roman  gems,  102. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  111,  113. 
relations  with  Hermes,  228. 
attributes  and  how  pictured,  235. 

Iacchos  ( see  Dionysos ) . 

Iao  (the  ineffable  name  of  the  Jews, 
given  to  Abraxas),  138. 
as  a  planetary  genius,  142. 

Ibis,  sacred  to  Thoth,  on  Gnostic  gems, 
140,  247. 

Ikaros,  on  early  Roman  gems,  91. 

how  pictured,  260. 

Ikelos  (one  of  the  Oneiroi),  236. 
Ildabaoth,  as  a  planetary  genius,  140, 
143. 

Implements,  on  Minoan  gems,  27. 
Inscriptions,  on  ancient  gems,  18. 
Minoan  gems,  24-28. 

Mycenaean  gems,  30. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  42. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  58. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  65,  70,  71,  72. 
Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  95,  101,  102. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  120. 
gems  of  Later  Empire,  127,  130. 
Early  Christian  gems,  130. 

Mithraic  gems,  134. 

Gnostic  gems,  136,  142-146. 
Gnostic  added  on  earlier  gems,  146. 
on  Byzantine  gems,  148. 

Sassanian  gems,  150,  151. 

Greek  on  Persian  gems  under  Par¬ 
thian  supremacy,  151. 

Pehlevi,  151. 

on  Sassanian  Christian  gems,  152. 
Mohammedan  gems,  153,  154. 
Rabbinical  gems,  154. 
Interpretations,  of  subjects  on  ancient 
gems  in  Mediaeval  times,  158. 
Iphigeneia,  on  early  Roman  gems,  97. 

identified  with  Artemis,  214. 

Iris,  attributes  and  how  pictured,  237. 
Ishtar,  identified  with  Aphrodite,  219. 
Isidore,  story  of,  told  by  Palladius,  147. 
Isis,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  80. 


INDEX 


411 


on  early  Roman  gems,  98. 
with  Homs  believed,  in  Mediaeval 
times,  to  represent  Virgin  and 
infant  Christ,  159. 
attributes,  affiliations  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  247. 

Isler,  Luigi  (modem  gem  engraver), 
193. 

Ismenias  the  flute-player,  story  of,  54. 
signet  of,  287. 

Ixion,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 
how  pictured,  260. 

Janus,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 
240. 

Jason,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 

how  pictured,  259. 

Jasper,  280. 

Minoan  Period,  25. 

Mycenaean  Period,  30. 

Archaic  Greek  Period,  37. 
Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  45. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  48. 

Best  Period,  52. 

Hellenistic  Period,  78. 

Early  Roman  Period,  101. 
Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 

Later  Empire,  125. 
used  for  Mithraic  gems,  132. 
used  for  Gnostic  gems,  136. 
used  for  Sassanian  gems,  149. 
used  for  Mohammedan  gems,  154. 
in  Mediaeval  Europe,  108. 

Jeuffroy  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 
Jugurtha,  surrender  of,  pictured,  94. 
Juno  (see  Hera). 

Juno,  on  early  Roman  gems,  98. 

Juno  Sospita,  cult  of,  104. 

Jupiter  (see  Zeus). 

Jupiter  Belus,  112. 

Juventas  ( see  Hebe ) . 

Kabeiroi,  on  early  Roman  gems?,  91. 
associated  with  Hekate  in  Samo- 
thrac-e,  215. 

attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  233. 

Kadmos,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 
Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89. 
how  pictured,  260. 

Kallikratgs,  signet  of,  288. 

Kalliope  (Muse),  how  pictured,  211. 
Kapaneus,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  67. 
Early  Roman  gems,  89. 
how  pictured,  266. 

Kassandra,  on  early  Roman  gems,  97. 


Graeco-Roman  gems,  113. 
how  pictured,  265. 

Kastor,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40,  43. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  114. 
how  pictured,  257. 

Kentauri  ( see  Centaurs ) . 

Kerberos  ( Cerberus ) ,  pictured  with 
Herakles  on  Archaic  Greek  gems, 
40;  on  Early  Roman  gems,  97. 
pictured  with  Hades,  205. 
how  represented,  252. 

Kirk  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Klearchos,  signet  of,  287. 

Kleio  (Muse),  how  pictured,  211. 

Kleon?  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 

122. 

Kleopatra,  signet  of,  237,  292. 

Klotho  (one  of  the  Fates),  how  pic¬ 
tured,  238. 

Klytaimnestra,  on  early  Roman  gems, 
89. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  113. 
how  pictured,  259. 

Koinos  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 
123. 

Kore  ( see  Persephone ) . 

Kouretes,  attributes,  cults,  affiliations, 
233. 

Kubele  ( Cybele ) ,  on  early  Roman  gems, 
98. 

attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  232. 

(See  Rhea.) 

Kyknos,  pictured  with  Herakles,  256, 
257. 

Kyrene,  gem  engravers  of,  54. 

(nymph),  identified  with  Artemis, 
214. 

Lachesis  (one  of  the  Fates),  how  pic¬ 
tured,  238. 

Landi,  Domenico  (modern  gem  en¬ 
graver),  183. 

Lane  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Lanzi,  Antonio  and  Virginio  (modern 
gem  engravers),  195,  PI.  XXXII, 
4,  5,  14. 

Laokoon,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  67. 
Early  Roman  gems,  90. 
how  pictured,  266. 

Lapidaria,  Mediaeval,  162. 

Lapis  Lazuli,  284. 

implied  occurrence  in  Archaic 
Greek  Period,  37. 

Best  Period,  52. 

may  be  looked  for  on  general  prin- 


412 


INDEX 


ciples  in  Graeco-Roman  Period, 
108. 

Later  Empire,  126. 
used  for  Sassanian  gems,  149. 
used  in  Renaissance,  126,  174, 
180. 

Law  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Lebas,  Paul  (modem  gem  engraver), 
193. 

“  L’Ebreo  ”  ( modern  gem  engraver ) , 

187. 

Leehevrelle  (modern  gem  engraver), 
193. 

Leda,  on  early  Roman  gems,  102. 

with  swan,  supposed,  in  Mediaeval 
times,  to  represent  the  Holy 
Ghost  descending  on  Mary  in  the 
form  of  a  dove,  159. 
how  pictured,  261. 

Lefevre  (modern  gem  engraver),  193. 

Legionary  cognizances,  114. 

Lehmann  (Renaissance  gem  engraver), 
179. 

Lens,  how  used  in  gem  engraving,  275. 

Lenticular  gems,  Minoan,  26. 
Mycenaean,  30. 

Melian  stones,  34. 

Lentulus,  Publius  Lentulus  Sura,  sig¬ 
net  of,  291. 

Leo,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  117. 

Leonardo  da  Milano,  perhaps  Leonardo 
da  Vinci  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  174. 

Leoni,  Leone  (Renaissance  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  176. 

Leto,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  74. 
how  pictured,  216. 

Liber  (see  Dionysos). 

Libertas,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 
243. 

Libra,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  117. 

Libya,  on  early  Roman  gems,  99. 
attributes  and  how  pictured,  242. 

Linear  characters,  on  Minoan  gems,  25, 
27,  28. 

Lion,  on  Mithraic  gems,- 132. 

Loadstone,  in  Mohammedan  gems,  154. 

Locust  ( see  Cicada ) . 

Logan  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Longobards,  use  of  ancient  gems  by, 
156. 

Lucina  ( see  Selene ) . 

Lucius  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 

122. 

Luck-bringing  devices,  on  Phoenician 
and  Carthaginian  scarabs,  46,  47. 
Etruscan  scarabs,  66,  69. 
Hellenistic  gems,  81. 


Early  Roman  gems,  95,  99,  103, 
104. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  116,  118. 
gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 

Lupus,  Q.  Cornelius,  signet  of,  94,  289. 

Lykomedes  (Hellenistic  gem  engraver), 
81. 

Lyre,  on  early  Christian  gem,  127. 

Ma,  identified  with  Artemis,  214. 

Macceroni,  Mariano  (modem  gem  en¬ 
graver),  195,  PI.  XXXII,  2,  3. 

Machaon,  on  early  Roman  gems,  89. 
how  pictured,  263. 

Madonna,  on  Mediseval  gems,  161,  PI. 
XXX,  11. 

Maecenas,  Caius  Cilnius,  signet  of,  291. 

Magical  virtues  in  precious  stones,  137. 
attributed  to  ancient  gems  in 
Mediaeval  Europe,  137,  155. 

Magna  Mater  ( see  Rhea  and  Kubele ) . 

Magus,  Simon,  early  proponent  of 
Gnostic  ideas,  135. 

Mainads  ( Bacchantes ) ,  on  gems  of  Best 
Period,  56. 

Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  98,  102. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  111. 
attributes,  associations  and  how 
pictured,  227. 

Malachite,  284. 

Manes  or  Manichseus,  Gnostic  philoso¬ 
pher,  135. 

Marble,  285. 

Marbodus,  subjects  recommended  by, 

159. 

Marcellus,  signet  of,  6,  84,  289. 

Marcia,  daughter  of  Stilicho,  signet  of, 
293. 

Marchant  (modern  gem  engraver),  188, 
PI.  XXXII,  17. 

Marcus  Aurelius,  portrait  of,  believed 
in  Mediaeval  times  to  be  portrait 
of  Christ,  157. 

Marcus  Curtius,  on  early  Roman  gems, 
97. 

how  represented,  268. 

Maria  Feodorowna,  Grand  Duchess,  en¬ 
graved  gems,  188. 

Marmitas,  the  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
gravers),  176. 

Mars,  on  early  Roman  gems,  94. 

(See  Ares.) 

Marsyas,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  55. 
Early  Roman  gems,  97. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  114. 
how  pictured,  226. 

Masagno,  Alessandro  (Renaissance  gem 


INDEX 


413 


engraver),  178. 

Masini  (modern  gem  engraver),  184, 
188. 

Masks,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  100. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  109,  (com¬ 
binations  of,  116). 
and  combined  masks,  on  gems  of 
Later  Empire,  126. 
three  combined  supposed  in  Middle 
Ages  to  typify  the  Trinity,  159. 

Materials,  of  ancient  gems,  11. 

Minoan  gems,  24,  25. 

Mycenaean  gems,  29,  30. 

gems  of  the  Greek  Middle  Ages,  32. 

Melian  stones,  34. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  37. 
Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  45. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  48. 

Greek  gems  of  Best  Period,  52. 
Etruscan  scarabs,  64. 

Hellenistic  gems,  78. 

Early  Roman  gems  under  Etruscan 
influence,  86. 

under  Hellenistic  influence,  96. 
under  combining  influences,  101. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  108. 

Later  Empire  gems,  125. 

Mithraic  gems,  132. 

Gnostic  gems,  136. 

Sassanian  gems,  149. 

Mohammedan  gems,  154. 

Mediaeval  gems,  168. 

Maurices,  the  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
gravers),  179. 

Mauritius,  signet  of,  293. 

Medeia,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  113. 
how  pictured,  260. 

Medici,  as  collectors  of  gems,  173. 

Medousa,  or  head  of,  on  Melian  stones, 
35. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  41. 
mask  on  Phoenician  and  Cartha¬ 
ginian  scarabs,  46. 
on  Etruscan  scarabs,  68,  74. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89,  97. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  114,  120. 
how  pictured,  238. 

Meleagros  (Meleager),  how  pictured, 
258. 

Melete  (one  of  the  three  early  Muses), 

210. 

Melikertes,  cults  and  how  pictured,  234. 

Melkart,  identified  with  Herakles,  47, 
255. 

Melpomene  (Muse),  on  Graeco-Roman 
gems,  122. 


how  pictured,  211. 

Memnon  possibly  pictured  with  Eos, 
237 ;  with  Thanatos,  235. 

Menelaos,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 
how  pictured,  265. 

Menes,  seal  of,  2. 

Mercury  (see  Hermes). 

Methe,  on  early  Roman  gems,  102. 
attributes  and  how  pictured,  237. 

Michel  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Michelino  (Renaissance  gem  engraver), 
174. 

Milton,  J.  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Minerva,  sign  of  the  Flavian  princes, 
118. 

( See  Athena. ) 

Minoan,  meaning  of  term,  23. 
datings,  24. 

Minotaur,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 
on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  122. 
how  pictured,  258. 

Miseron  (Renaissance  gem  engravers), 
179. 

Misuronis,  the  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
gravers),  177. 

Mithraic  brotherhood,  132. 

initiations,  132,  (gems  illustrating, 
133),  134. 

Mithras  and  Mithrasism,  131. 

identified  with  other  deities,  132. 
resemblance  of  Mithrasism  to 
Christianity,  132. 
how  represented  on  gems,  133. 
initiatory  ceremonies  suggested  on 
gems,  133. 

adoption  of  Mithrasism  in  Gnostic 
sects,  134. 

identified  with  Helios,  210. 
attributes  and  how  pictured,  248. 

Mitra,  on  Mithraic  gems?,  133. 

Mneme  (one  of  the  three  early  Muses), 

211. 

Mnesarchos  of  Samos  (Archaic  Greek 
gem  engraver),  43. 

Mochi,  Stefano  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  179. 

Mohammedan  gems,  153. 

Moirai  (Parcae),  associated  with  Arte¬ 
mis,  214. 

some  association  with  Aphrodite, 
219. 

attributes  and  how  pictured,  238. 

Mondella  (Renaissance  gem  engraver), 
174. 

Monicca  (Renaissance  gem  engraver), 
179. 

Monsters  or  demons,  on  Minoan  gems, 
25,  28. 


414 


INDEX 


Mycenaean  gems,  32. 

Melian  stones,  35. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  40,  41. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  46,  47. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  49. 

gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  66,  69,  74. 

Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  114. 

Sassanian  gems,  149. 

as  magic  working  figures,  249. 

Moon,  on  Sassanian  gems,  150. 

Moonstone,  284. 

Moretti,  Marco  Attio  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  175. 

Morpheus,  attributes,  cults,  affiliations 
and  how  pictured,  236. 

Mottoes,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  58. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  120. 

Early  Christian  gems,  130. 

Mucius  Scsevola  ( see  Scsevola ) . 

Mummy  encoiled  by  serpent,  on  Gnostic 
gems,  141. 

Muses,  on  early  Roman  gems,  99. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  111,  122. 

attributes,  affiliations  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  210. 

Musicians,  wearing  of  rings  by,  54. 

Mycenaean,  meaning  of  term,  23. 

Myk5n  ( Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver ) , 
123. 

Mylitta,  identified  with  Aphrodite,  219. 

Naiads,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 
227. 

Names,  of  deities  on  Gnostic  gems,  142- 
146. 

of  Gnostic  genii,  powers,  etc.,  142- 
146. 

whether  of  artists  or  owners, 
points  in  passing  upon,  61,  124. 

Names  of  owners,  18. 

on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  42. 

gems  of  Best  Period,  58. 

Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  95,  101,  102. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  120  (or  artists, 
124). 

Early  Christian  gems,  130. 

Narkissos  (Narcissus),  on  Graeco-Ro¬ 
man  gems,  114. 

Nassaro,  Matteo  del  (Renaissance  gem 
%  engraver),  176. 

Natalis,  Flaminius  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  178. 

Natter,  Lorenz  <  modern  gem  engraver ) , 
185. 


Nature  myths,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  80. 
Nausias  (gem  engraver  of  Best  Period), 
61. 

Naxian  powder,  cutting  medium  used  in 
gem  engraving,  273. 
used  to  polish  gems,  276. 

Negri,  Ottavio  ( modern  gem  engraver ) , 
193,  PI.  XXXII,  9. 

Negro  slaves,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems, 
42. 

on  gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 
Nemesis,  on  early  Roman  gems,  99,  101, 
102. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  109. 
gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
attributes,  affiliations  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  216. 

some  association  with  Aphrodite, 
219;  with  Psyche,  223. 
Neoptolemos,  how  pictured,  265. 
Neptune  (see  Poseidon). 

Nereids,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  111,  114,  122. 
attributes,  associations  and  how 
pictured,  227. 

Nero,  ring  presented  by  Sporus  to,  292. 
Nessos,  how  pictured,  250. 

Nestorian  Christians  in  Persia,  152. 
Nichini,  Francesco  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  174. 

Nicolo,  282. 

Early  Roman  Period,  86,  101. 
Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 

Later  Empire,  125. 

Nikandros  (Hellenistic  gem  engraver), 
82. 

Nike,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  41. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  55. 

(Victory),  on  early  Roman  gems, 
99,  ‘  101,  102. 

on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  111,  113, 
114,  123. 

gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 

Early  Christian  gems,  129. 
Sassanian  gems,  149. 
believed,  in  Mediaeval  times,  to 
be  the  figure  of  an  angel,  129, 
159. 

attributes,  affiliations  and  how 
pictured,  218. 

Nossop  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 
Numerals,  sacred  and  lucky,  on  Gnostic 
gems,  145. 

as  expressed  on  Gnostic  gems,  146. 
Nymphs,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  41. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  102,  121,  122. 


INDEX 


415 


attributes,  associations  and  how 
pictured,  227. 

Obscene  pictures,  on  Hellenistic  gems, 
81. 

on  early  Roman  gems,  98. 

Oceanus  (see  Okeanos). 

Odelli  (modern  gem  engraver),  191. 

Odysseus,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 

Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89,  97. 
(Ulysses)  Grgeco-Roman  gems,  113, 
122. 

attributes  and  how  pictured,  264. 
signet  of,  286. 

Oidipous  (GMipus),  on  early  Roman 
gems,  89. 

pictured  with  Sphinx,  261. 

Okeanids,  associations  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  227. 

Okeanos  (Oceanus), on  Hellenistic  gems, 
80. 

how  pictured,  234. 

Olympios  (gem  engraver  of  Best  Pe¬ 
riod),  60,  61,  PI.  IX,  4. 

Omphale,  on  early  Roman  gems,  97. 
how  pictured,  256. 

Onatas  (gem  engraver  of  Best  Period), 
60,  PI.  IX,  13. 

Oneiroi  (Dreams),  names  of  and  how 
appearing,  236. 

Onesas  (Hellenistic  gem  engraver),  82, 
PI.  XIV,  14. 

Onyx,  281. 

Ophites,  schema  of,  142. 

doctrine  of,  according  to  Hippoli- 
tus,  143. 

great  names  according  to,  143. 

Oracular  divination  scenes,  on  early 
Roman  gems,  92. 

Orai,  as  a  planetary  genius,  142. 

Orcus  ( see  Hades ) . 

Orestes,  on  early  Roman  gems,  89, 
97. 

Grgeco-Roman  gems,  113. 
how  pictured,  259. 
signet  of,  286. 

Orpheus,  head  of,  on  early  Roman  gems, 
93. 

how  pictured,  258. 

Orphic  cult,  voiced  on  early  Roman 
gems,  91,  93. 
cosmogony,  118. 
ideas  on  Gnostic  gems,  146. 

Orthryades,  on  early  Roman  gems,  91. 
how  pictured,  262. 


Osiris,  on  later  gems  masquerading  as 
Gnostic,  137,  141. 

Paintings,  copied  on  ancient  gems,  4. 

on  gems  of  Best  Period,  51. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  71. 

Hellenistic  gems,  79. 

Early  Roman  gems,  103. 

Grseco-Roman  gems,  112,  113. 

Palaimon,  identified  with  Melikertes, 
234. 

Palamedes,  on  early  Roman  gems,  89. 

Palladium,  theft  of,  on  early  Roman 
gems,  89. 

on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  113,  120, 

122. 

Palladius,  his  story  of  Abba  Macarius, 
147. 

Pallas,  signet  of,  292. 

Palm  branch,  on  early  Christian  gems, 
128. 

Pamphilos  ( Graeco-Roman  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  122,  PI.  XX,  15. 

Pan,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

(Faunus),  on  Graeco-Roman  gems, 

112. 

attributes,  affiliations  and  how 
pictured,  226. 

Pantheistic  figures,  on  early  Roman 
gems,  103. 

on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  112. 

246. 

Paradise  of  the  Holy  Fathers,  story 
from,  147. 

Parcae  (see  Moirai). 

Paris,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 

how  pictured,  266. 

Parthenopaios,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  to 
be  identified  only  by  name,  267. 

Pasiphae,  probably  identified  with  Aph¬ 
rodite,  219. 

how  pictured,  261. 

Passiglia  (modern  gem  engraver),  187. 

Patroklos,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89. 

how  pictured,  265. 

Pax,  on  early  Roman  gems,  102. 

(See  Eirene. ) 

Payne  Knight,  Richard,  and  Pistrucci’s 
“  Flora,”  190. 

Peacock,  as  an  Orphic  symbol  on  early 
Roman  gems,  94. 

Peart  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Pegasos,  on  Minoan  gems?,  28. 

Melian  stones,  35. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  74. 

Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89. 


416 


INDEX 


Sassanian  gems,  150. 
how  pictured,  251. 

Pehlevi  alphabet,  151. 
inscriptions,  151. 

Peleus,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 

Penates,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 
245. 

Penelope,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Pentad,  how  represented  on  Gnostic 
gems,  145. 

Penthesileia,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 
Early  Roman  gems,  89. 
how  pictured,  263. 

Peratai,  great  names  according  to  the, 
143. 

Peridot,  283. 

Hellenistic  Period,  78. 
Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 

Peri-Lithon,  Orphic  book  on  the  magical 
properties  of  stones,  137. 

Perriciuole  (Renaissance  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  179. 

Persephone  (Kore,  Proserpina), on  gems 
of  Best  Period,  56. 

Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  93. 
attributes,  affiliations  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  206. 

identified  with  Hekate,  215. 
affiliated  with  Aphrodite,  219. 

Perseus,  on  Melian  stones,  35. 
Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89,  97. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  113. 
attributes  and  how  pictured,  258. 

Peruzzi  (Renaissance  gem  engraver), 
173. 

Pescia,  Piero  Maria  da  (Renaissance 
gem  engraver),  174,  PI.  XXX,  2. 

Phaidra,  possibly  identified  with  Aph¬ 
rodite,  219. 

Phanakes,  an  Oriental  deity  identified 
with  Mithras,  132. 

Phantasos  (one  of  the  Oneiroi),  236. 

Pharnakes  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  123. 

Phedias  ( Hellenistic  gem  engraver),  82, 
PI.  XV,  14. 

Philemon  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  122. 

Philoktetes,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 
Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 

Early  Roman  gems,  90. 
how  pictured,  263. 

Philon  (Hellenistic  gem  engraver),  82. 

Philosophers,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  81. 
Early  Roman  gems,  97,  103. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  115. 


Phocas,  signet  of,  293. 

Phoibe  ( see  Selene ) . 

Phrygillos  (gem  engraver  of  Best  Pe¬ 
riod),  55,  60,  61,  PI.  VII,  4. 

Pichler,  Anton  (modern  gem  engraver), 
183. 

Johann  (modern  gem  engraver), 
186,  PI.  XXXII,  16. 

Luigi  (modern  gem  engraver), 
189,  PI.  XXXII,  11,  22. 

Pictographs,  on  Minoan  gems,  24,  25, 
27. 

Pierres  d’Israel,  137,  158,  162. 

Pietas,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 
244. 

Pingo  (modern  gem  engraver),  188. 

Pippo  Santo  Croce  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  177. 

Pisces,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  117. 

Pistis  Sophia,  sole  remaining  Gnostic 
gospel,  135,  141,  142. 
great  names  according  to  the,  143, 
145. 

interpretations  of  names  according 
to  the,  145. 

Pistrucci,  Benedetto  (modern  gem  en¬ 
graver),  189. 

his  story  of  the  Payne  Knight 
“Flora,”  190. 
wonderful  eyesight  of,  276. 

Elina  and  Elisa  (modern  gem  en¬ 
gravers),  193. 

Planetary  genii,  on  Gnostic  gems,  139. 
explanation  of,  140. 
forms  of,  140,  249. 
names  of,  140,  142-144. 

Plasma,  279. 

Archaic  Greek  Period  and  later,  37. 
unique  Etruscan  scarab  in,  64. 
Early  Roman  Period?,  86. 
Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 

Later  Empire,  125. 
used  for  Gnostic  gems,  136. 

Pliny  the  Younger,  signet  of,  292. 

Plouto  ( see  Hades ) . 

Polish,  of  ancient  gems,  13. 

Archaic  Greek  Period,  38,  44. 

Best  Period,  53. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  65,  72. 
Hellenistic  Period,  79. 

Early  Roman  gems,  14. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  14. 
gems  of  Later  Empire,  14. 
reason  for  higher,  on  backs  of  an¬ 
cient  gems,  156. 
gems  of  Renaissance,  172,  175. 
modern  gems,  187,  189. 
means  used  to,  276. 


INDEX 


417 


Pollux  (see  Polydeukes). 

Polo,  Dominico  di  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  176. 

Polydeukes  ( Pollux ) ,  on  Archaic  Greek 
gems,  40,  43. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  114. 
how  pictured,  257. 

Polyeidos,  on  early  Roman  gems,  93. 

Polykleitos  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  122. 

Polykrates  of  Samos,  ring  of,  43,  286. 

Polymnia  (Muse),  how  pictured,  211. 

Polyneikes,  how  pictured,  267. 

Polyxene,  how  pictured,  265. 

Pomona,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 
240. 

Pompeius,  Gnaeus  Pompeius  Magnus, 
signet  of,  290. 

Poniatowski  Collection,  VI,  191,  PI. 
XXXII,  21. 

Porphyry,  285. 

in  Mycenaean  Period,  30. 

Portraits,  in  Best  Period,  57. 

of  Alexander  the  Great,  57 ;  edict 
allowing  only  Pyrgoteles  to  cut 
his  likeness,  57. 

in  Hellenistic  Period,  busts,  79. 
Early  Roman,  100,  105. 
in  Graeco-Roman  Period,  109,  115; 
of  rulers  with  divine  attributes, 
116,  119;  of  Augustus  and  De¬ 
mosthenes  by  Dioskourides,  121 ; 
Cameo  of  Tiberius  by  Herophilos, 
121;  of  Sextus  Pompey  by  Aga- 
thangelos,  121 ;  of  Julia  by 
Evodos,  122. 

under  Later  Empire,  125,  127,  130; 
of  Commodus  and  of  Constantius 
II,  hunting,  127. 

of  Christ  on  early  Christian  gems, 
129. 

on  Byzantine  gems,  129,  148. 
Sassanian  gems,  150. 
of  Christ  on  Sassanian  Christian 
gems,  152. 

of  Marcus  Aurelius,  believed  in  Me¬ 
diaeval  times  to  be  of  Christ,  157. 
of  Caracalla,  believed  in  Mediaeval 
times  to  be  of  St.  Peter,  159. 
on  Mediaeval  gems,  160,  161. 
Renaissance  gems,  175,  176,  177, 
178,  179,  180. 

modern  gems,  183,  184,  185,  186. 

Portunus,  identified  with  Melikertes, 
234. 

Poseidon,  on  Phoenician  and  Cartha¬ 
ginian  scarabs?,  47. 


on  Etruscan  scarabs,  66,  71. 

(Neptune),  on  early  Roman  gems, 
101,  103. 

Graeco- Roman  gems,  112. 
gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  203. 

Powers,  Astral  (see  Genii). 

Pownall,  W.  and  T.  (modern  gem  en¬ 
gravers),  188. 

Preissler  (modern  gem  engraver),  184. 

Priamos  ( Priam ) ,  on  early  Roman 
gems,  89. 

how  pictured,  262. 

Priapos,  on  gems  of  Best  Period?,  56. 

Early  Roman  gems,  102. 

attributes  and  how  pictured,  238. 

Prism  shaped  gems,  Minoan,  24, 
25. 

Mycenaean,  29. 

Melian  stones,  34. 

Greek-Persian,  48. 

Greek  of  Best  Period,  52. 

Hellenistic,  77. 

Graeco-Roman,  110. 

Prometheus,  on  Melian  stones,  35. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  67. 

Early  Roman  gems,  91. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  113. 

how  pictured,  261. 

Proserpina  ( see  Persephone ) . 

Prospero  delle  Camiole  (Renaissance 
gem  engraver),  174. 

Protarchos  ( Hellenistic  gem  engraver ) , 
83. 

Providentia,  Deorum,  attributes  and 
how  pictured,  244. 

Augusti,  245. 

Psyche,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  98,  102. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  111. 

attributes,  affiliations  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  222. 

Ptolemaios  VIII,  signet  given  by,  to 
Lucullus,  288. 

Pudicitia,  how  pictured,  244. 

Pylades,  how  pictured,  259. 

Pyrgoteles  (gem  engraver  of  Best  Pe¬ 
riod),  57,  62. 

Pyrrhos,  gem  of,  288. 

Pythagoreans,  forbidden  to  wear  por¬ 
trait  of  a  god,  43. 

Quintus  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 

122. 

Ragael,  reputed  author  of  lapidaria, 
162. 


418 


INDEX 


Rectangular  gems,  in  Greek  Middle 
Ages,  33. 

Rega  (modern  gem  engraver),  187,  PI. 
XXXII,  18. 

Reisen,  Christian  (modern  gem  en¬ 
graver),  183. 

Religious  pictures,  on  early  Christian 
gems,  129. 

Byzantine  gems,  148. 

Sassanian  Christian  gems,  152. 

Mediaeval  gems,  159,  PI.  XXX,  8, 

10,  11. 

Renaissance  gems,  175,  176. 

Remus,  how  pictured,  267. 

Renton  (modern  gem  engraver),  193. 

Resurrection  pictures,  on  early  Roman 
gems,  93. 

Rex  Nemorensis,  on  early  Roman  gems, 
92. 

Rey,  Suzon  (Renaissance  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  179. 

Rhea,  on  Minoan  gems  ?,  PI.  I,  5. 

(Kubele,  Cybele,  Magna  Mater), 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  231. 
relations  with  Syria  Dea,  233. 

Ricci  (modern  gem  engraver),  184. 

Ring-stones,  Archaic  Greek,  37. 

Greek  of  Best  Period,  51. 

Hellenistic,  77. 

Early  Roman,  85,  86. 

Graeco-Roman,  109. 

Later  Empire,  123. 

Sassanian,  149. 

Mohammedan,  154. 

Rings,  early  Roman,  cut  in  metal, 
84. 

Ring  wearing,  great  increase  of,  in 
Grseco-Roman  Period,  107. 

River-gods,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  73. 

on  Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  99. 

how  pictured,  251. 

Rock-crystal,  283. 

Minoan  Period,  25. 

Mycensean  Period,  30. 

Archaic  Greek  Period,  37. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  48. 

Best  Period,  52. 

Hellenistic  Period,  78. 

Grseco-Roman  Period,  108. 

Later  Empire,  126. 

Mediaeval  times,  159,  160. 

Renaissance,  175,  176,  177,  179. 

Roma,  on  early  Roman  gems,  94. 

Romulus  and  Remus,  on  early  Roman 
gems,  94. 

how  pictured,  267. 


Rossi,  Giovanni  Antonio  dei  (Renais¬ 
sance  gem  engraver),  177. 
Girolamo  (modern  gem  engraver), 
184. 

Rubies,  used  rarely  for  Mohammedan 
gems,  154. 

used  in  Mediaeval  times,  161. 
used  in  Renaissance,  174,  178,  179. 
rarely,  if  ever,  used  in  ancient 
times,  277. 

Rufus  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 
123. 

Rural  scenes  and  characters,  on  Minoan 
gems,  25. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  47. 

Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  95,  97. 
Grseco-Roman  gems,  114. 

S,  triple,  transversed  by  bar,  on  Gnostic 
gems,  139. 

Saadi,  Najib  (modern  gem  engraver), 
194. 

Sabao,  as  a  planetary  genius,  142. 

Sabaoth,  title  of  Abraxas  god,  138. 

Sabazios,  identified  with  Dionysos  and 
Zeus,  224. 

relations  with  Rhea-Cybele  and  At- 
tis,  224. 
attribute,  224. 

Sacerdotal  scenes,  on  Mycensean  gems, 
31. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  49. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  66. 

Early  Roman  gems,  92. 

Sassanian  gems,  149. 

Sacramental  table,  on  Gnostic  gems, 
140. 

Salus,  attributes  and  how  pictured,  244. 

Sancus,  relations  with  Herakles,  255. 

Santarilli  ( modern  gem  engraver ) ,  188. 

Santini,  A.  (modern  gem  engraver), 
184. 

Santo  Croce,  Philippo  or  Pippo  (Renais¬ 
sance  gem  engraver),  177. 

Sapphire,  Grseco-Roman  Period,  108. 
Later  Empire,  127. 
used  for  Sassanian  gems,  149. 
used  in  Mediaeval  times,  161. 
used  in  Renaissance,  178. 
rarely  used  in  ancient  times,  277. 

Sard,  278. 

Best  Period,  52. 

Hellenistic  Period,  78. 

Early  Roman  Period,  86.  96,  101. 
Grseco-Roman  Period,  108. 

Later  Empire,  126. 


INDEX 


419 


used  for  Mohammedan  gems,  154. 
Sardonyx,  282. 

Mycenaean  Period,  30. 

Archaic  Greek  Period,  37. 

Best  Period,  52. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  64. 

Hellenistic  Period,  78. 

Early  Roman  Period,  86,  101. 
Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 

Later  Empire,  126. 

used  for  Sassanian  gems,  149. 

Sate,  as  Juno,  on  Gnostic  gems,  141. 
Saturn,  attributes,  affiliations  and  how 
pictured,  240. 

Saturninus  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  123. 

Satyrs,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 
Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

Early  Roman  gems,  98,  102. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  111,  122. 
attributes,  affiliations  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  225. 

Savonarola,  portrait  of,  174. 

Scaevola,  Mueius,  on  early  Roman  gems, 
91. 

how  represented,  268. 

Scaliger,  comments  on  horoscopes,  169. 
Scaraboids,  Minoan  suggestion  of,  26. 
in  Greek  Middle  Ages,  33. 

Melian,  34. 

Archaic  Greek,  36,  37. 
Greek-Persian,  48. 

Asiatic  Greek  of  Best  Period,  50. 
Greek  of  Best  Period,  50,  51. 
Scarabs,  Egyptian,  2. 

motives  from  Egyptian,  found  on 
Minoan  gems,  25,  26,  28. 
in  Greek  Middle  Ages,  33. 

Melian,  34. 

Archaic  Greek,  36,  37 ;  carelessly 
finished  and  base  ornamentation 
lacking,  37,  44. 

Greek  for  Etruscans,  44. 
Phoenician  and  Carthaginian,  45. 
Greek  of  Best  Period,  51. 

Etruscan,  63;  elaborately  finished 
and  base  ornamented,  63;  forms 
of,  64;  made  as  ornaments,  65, 
72. 

Hellenistic  with  Egyptian  symbols, 
77. 

Early  Roman,  85,  86. 

Schwargen,  Christopher  ( Renaissance 
gem  engraver),  178. 

Scipio  Africanus,  signet  of,  290. 

Scipio,  Gnseus,  signet  of,  290. 

Scorpio,  on  Graeco-Roman,  gems,  117. 
birth  sign  of  Tiberius,  118. 


Sculpture  ( see  Statues ) . 

Seal,  of  Hospitallers  of  Venice,  157. 
of  monks  of  Durham,  157. 
of  Spartan  government,  288. 

Seals  of  the  Florentines,  161. 

Seasons  ( see  Horai ) . 

Seaton  (modern  gem  engraver),  183. 

Securitas,  how  pictured,  244. 

Augusta,  245. 

Seilenos,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40,  41. 
Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  46. 

gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  73. 

Early  Roman  gems,  98,  102. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  111. 
attributes,  affiliations  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  225. 

Seilenos-Besa  mask,  in  Graeco-Roman 
grylli,  119,  225. 

Seirens,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  41. 
Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  47. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  49. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  74. 
how  pictured,  251. 

Selene  (Phoibe,  Lucina),  attributes,  af¬ 
filiations  and  how  pictured,  214. 

Seleukos,  signet  of,  288. 

Semon  (Archaic  Greek  gem  engraver?), 
44,  PI.  IV,  19. 

Serapis,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  80. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  114,  119. 
gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
confused  with  Christ  by  Gnostics 
and  others,  129. 
on  Gnostic  gems,  141. 
believed,  in  Mediaeval  times,  to  be 
the  portrait  of  Christ,  157,  159. 
identified  with  Zeus,  201 ;  with 
Hades,  205. 
attributes  of,  201. 

Serpent,  on  Mithraie  gems,  133. 

with  tail  in  mouth,  on  Gnostic 
gems,  141. 

Serpentine,  284. 

Minoan  Period,  25. 

Mycenaean  Period,  30. 
included  under  “  soft  materials  ”  in 
Greek  Middle  Ages,  32;  and  in 
Melian  revival,  34. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  45. 

Severo  da  Ravenna  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  175. 

Shales,  285. 

Shapes  or  forms,  of  ancient  gems,  12. 


420 


INDEX 


Minoan  gems,  24,  25,  26. 

Mycenaean  gems,  29,  30. 

gems  of  Greek  Middle  Ages,  32. 

Melian  stones,  34. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  36,  37. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  gems, 
45. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  48. 

gems  of  Best  Period,  51. 

Etruscan  gems,  63. 

Hellenistic  gems,  77. 

Early  Roman  gems,  86,  96,  101. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  109. 

Later  Empire  gems,  125. 

Gnostic  gems,  136. 

Byzantine  gems,  148. 

Sassanian  gems,  149. 

Mohammedan  gems,  154. 

Renaissance  gems,  172. 

Shepherds  with  pedums  believed,  in 
Mediaeval  times,  to  be  representa¬ 
tions  of  abbots  bearing  their 
crooks,  159. 

Ships,  on  Minoan  gems,  27. 

Mycenaean  gems,  31. 

Melian  stones,  35. 

Early  Roman  gems,  104. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  117. 

Early  Christian  gems,  128. 

Signatures  of  ancient  gem  engravers, 
18. 

(See  Artists.) 

points  in  determining  whether 
name  is  of  artist  or  owner,  61, 
124. 

Signets  of  Julius  Caesar,  6,  291;  Con¬ 
stantins  II,  6,  127,  293;  Lucius 
Scipio  Barbatus,  6,  289;  Mareel- 
lus,  6,  84,  289;  Sulla,  94,  290; 
Quintus  Cornelius  Lupus,  94, 
289;  Charlemagne,  157;  Pepin  le 
Bref,  157;  Pepin,  due  d’ Aqui¬ 
taine,  157 ;  Carloman,  157 ;  Louis 
I,  157;  Lothaire,  157,  160;  Ead- 
gar,  157 ;  Seffrid,  Bishop  of  Chi¬ 
chester,  157 ;  Archbishop  of  Sens, 
157;  Theobald  of  Canterbury, 
158;  Stephen  Langton,  158; 
King  John  of  France  and  Me¬ 
diaeval  nobles,  160;  Bitton, 
Bishop  of  Exeter,  161;  Charles 
V  of  France,  161 ;  Matthew 
Paris?,  161;  Jean  sans  Peur, 
161;  Michael  Angelo,  172;  Kleo¬ 
patra,  237,  292;  Polykrates,  43, 
286;  Orestes,  286;  Odysseus, 
286;  Amphitryon,  286;  Xerxes, 
287 ;  Battos  of  Kyrene,  287 ;  Is- 


menias,  54,  287 ;  Klearchos,  287 ; 
Alexander  the  Great,  287 ;  Seleu- 
kos,  288;  Kallikrates,  288; 
Areios,  King  of  Sparta,  288; 
Athenion,  288;  P.  Cornelius  Sci¬ 
pio  Africanus,  290;  Gnaeus  Sci¬ 
pio,  290;  Gn.  Pompeius  Magnus, 
290;  P.  Lentulus  Sura,  291; 
Augustus,  291;  C.  Cilnius  Mae¬ 
cenas,  291;  Pallas,  292;  Galba, 
292;  Hadrian,  292;  Pliny  the 
Younger,  292;  Commodus,  292; 
Marcia,  daughter  of  Stilicho, 
293;  Mauritius,  293;  Phocas, 
293;  Comnenus,  293;  Alaric, 
294. 

Signets,  of  soldiers,  114. 

ancient  gems  used  as,  in  Mediaeval 
Europe,  157. 

Silettis,  the  (Renaissance  gem  engra¬ 
vers),  179. 

Simon,  Thomas  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  180. 

great  grandson  of  ( modern  gem  en¬ 
graver),  187. 

Simons,  the  (modern  gem  engravers), 
189. 

Siries,  Louis  (modem  gem  engraver), 
186. 

Sirius,  the  dog,  head  of,  by  Gaius,  122. 
sometimes  ridden  by  Isis,  248. 

Sirletti,  Flavio,  Francesco  and  Raimon- 
do  (modern  gem  engravers),  183, 
PI.  XXX,  13. 

Size  of  ancient  gems,  11. 

Skeletons,  on  early  Roman  gems,  103. 

Skopas  (Hellenistic  gem  engraver),  82, 
PI.  XIV,  7. 

Skylax  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 

122. 

Smith,  J.  and  T.  (modern  gem  en¬ 
gravers),  189. 

Solomon,  reputed  author  of  lapidaria, 
162,  163. 

Solon,  law  of,  36. 

Solon  ( Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver ) , 
120,  PI.  XX,  8. 

Sosis  (Hellenistic  gem  engraver),  82. 

Sosokles  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver ) , 
120,  PI.  XXI,  3. 

Sospolis,  male  associate  deity  with 
Eileithyia,  at  Olympia,  identified 
with  Zeus-Dionysos  of  Crete, 

214. 

Sostratos  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engra¬ 
ver),  123,  PI.  XX,  12. 

Souls,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  67. 

Spes,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  113. 


INDEX 


421 


attributes  and  how  pictured,  244. 
Augusta,  245. 

Sphinx,  on  Minoan  gems,  28. 

Mycensean  gems,  32. 

Melian  stones,  35. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  41. 
Greek-Persian  gems,  49. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 
Hellenistic  gems,  77. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89. 
Grseco-Roman  gems,  114. 
how  pictured,  250. 

Sports  and  games,  on  Minoan  gems,  27, 
29. 

Standard,  Persian,  on  Sassanian  gems?, 
150. 

Standards,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  114. 
Star  (Sun),  on  Mithraic  gems,  133. 
on  Sassanian  gems,  150. 
on  Mohammedan  gems,  154. 
Statues,  ancient,  copied  on  ancient 
gems,  4. 

copied  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  51, 
55. 

on  Hellenistic  gems,  79. 
on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  112;  an¬ 
cient,  copied  by  Sirletti,  183. 
Steatite,  285. 

Minoan  Period,  24. 

Mycenaean  Period,  29. 

Greek  Middle  Ages,  32. 

Melian  stones,  34. 

Archaic  Greek  Period,  37. 
Greek-Persian  gems,  48. 

Stefano  (Renaissance  gem  engraver), 
177. 

Stoseh,  Baron  ( gem  collector  and  fraud ) , 
181. 

Subjects  of  gem  pictures,  why  chosen, 
3. 

knowledge  to  be  gained  from,  3. 
on  ancient  gems,  16. 

Minoan  gems,  24,  27. 

Mycenaean  gems,  29,  30. 
gems  of  Greek  Middle  Ages,  33. 
Melian  stones,  34. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  39. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  45. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  49. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  54. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  63,  66,  70,  73. 
Hellenistic  gems,  79. 

Early  Roman  gems,  88,  97,  102. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  107,  111. 
gems  of  Later  Empire,  125,  126. 
Early  Christian,  127. 

Mithraic,  132;  objects,  magic  work¬ 


ing  and  to  identify  the  wearer, 
134. 

Gnostic,  137. 

Sassanian,  149. 

Sassanian  Christian,  152. 
Mohammedan,  153. 
on  ancient  gems,  how  interpreted  in 
Mediaeval  Europe,  158. 
recommended  by  the  lapidaria  of 
“  Thetel,”  162;  of  Solomon,  163. 
on  gems  of  the  Renaissance,  171, 
172,  175-180. 

on  modern  gems,  182-196. 

Sulla,  signet  of.  94,  290. 

Sun,  on  Minoan  gems,  27. 

Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  45. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  73. 
rising  and  setting  of,  how  sym¬ 
bolized  on  Mithraic  gems,  133. 
on  Sassanian  gems,  150. 

Surface  appearance  of  ancient  gems,  12. 

Swastika,  on  Minoan  gems,  28. 

Sylvanus,  relation  to  Herakles,  74. 

Symbolic  designs,  on  gems  of  Best 
Period,  58. 

Symbols,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  81. 
Early  Roman  gems,  99,  100.  103. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  109,  117,  118. 
gems  of  the  Later  Empire,  125,  126. 
Early  Christian  gems,  127. 

Mithraic  gems,  133. 

Symplegmata,  derivation  of,  118. 

(See  Grylli.) 

Syria  Dea,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  112. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  233. 

Syries  (Archaic  Greek  gem  engraver), 
44,  PI.  V,  2. 

Systrum,  on  Hellenistic  scarabs,  77. 

Tagliacarne,  Jacopo  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  174. 

Talani,  Signora  (modern  gem  en¬ 
graver),  188. 

Talismans,  Gnostic,  136,  137. 

ancient  gems  regarded  as,  in  Me¬ 
diaeval  Europe,  137,  155,  162. 
Mediaeval,  162-169. 

Tanit,  identified  with  Aphrodite,  219. 

Tantalos,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 
how  pictured,  260. 

Tavernas,  the  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
gravers),  177,  PI.  XXX,  14. 

Technique,  of  ancient  gem  engraving, 
14. 

in  Minoan  Period,  25.  27. 

Mycensean  Period,  29,  30. 


422 


INDEX 


of  Melian  stones,  34. 
in  Archaic  Greek  Period,  36,  37,  38. 
of  Phoenician  and  Carthaginian 
scarabs,  45. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  49. 
in  Best  Period,  50,  52. 
of  Etruscan  scarabs,  64,  65,  69,  70, 
71,  72. 

in  Hellenistic  Period,  78. 

Early  Roman  Period,  85,  87,  96, 

101. 

Graeco-Roman  Period,  109,  110. 
Later  Empire,  125. 
of  Gnostic  gems,  137. 

Sassanian  gems,  149. 

Mohammedan  gems,  154. 
in  the  Renaissance,  171,  175,  178. 
in  modern  times,  182,  183,  186,  187, 
188,  189,  193. 

Telesphoros,  how  pictured,  231. 

Tellus  (see  Gaia). 

Terpsichore  (Muse),  how  pictured,  211. 
Teukros  (Teucer),  on  early  Roman 
gems,  89. 

Teukros  (Graeco-Roman  gem  engraver), 

122. 

Thalia  (Muse),  believed  in  Mediaeval 
times  to  represent  Herodias  with 
the  head  of  John  the  Baptist, 
159. 

how  pictured,  211. 

Thanatos,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  67. 
on  Graeco-Roman  gems.  See  PI. 
XXIV,  19. 

attributes  and  how  pictured,  235. 
Theatre  types,  on  early  Roman  gems, 
100*. 

on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  116. 
Themis,  how  pictured,  234. 

Theodoros  of  Samos  (Archaic  Greek 
gem  engraver),  43. 

Theseus,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 

Early  Roman  gems,  89. 
Graeco-Roman  gems,  112,  121,  122. 
attributes  and  how  pictured,  257. 
Tlietel,  reputed  author  of  lapidaria, 
162. 

Thetis,  on  early  Roman  gems,  90. 
how  pictured,  262. 

Thompson  (modern  gem  engraver),  189. 
Thoth,  attributes  of,  247. 

Thronius,  Jacobus  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  177. 

Thunder-bird,  on  Minoan  gems,  27. 
Tipas,  the  (modern  gem  engravers), 
191. 


Titles,  on  Sassanian  gems,  151. 

Tityos,  on  Melian  stones?,  35. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  40. 
how  pictured,  261. 

Topaz,  283. 

Hellenistic  Period,  78. 
Graeco-Roman  Period,  108. 

Trabacchi,  Gaetano  ( modern  gem  en¬ 
graver),  195. 

Tree  of  Life,  on  Mycenaean  gems,  31. 
on  gems  of  Greek  Middle  Ages,  33. 
on  Sassanian  gems,  150. 

Trees,  on  Minoan  gems,  27. 
on  Mycenaean  gems,  31. 
on  Melian  stones,  35. 

Trezzo,  Jacopo  da  (Renaissance  gem 
engraver),  177. 

Triad,  how  represented  on  Gnostic  gems, 
145. 

Triangle  on  a  pillar,  symbol  of  the 
moon,  on  Gnostic  gems,  140. 

Trines,  doctrine  of,  117;  as  expounded 
by  Camillo  di  Leonardo,  168. 

Tripods,  on  gems  of  Best  Period,  58. 

Triptolemos  (Demophoon,  Bonus  Even- 
tus ) ,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  68. 
on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  112. 
pictured  with  Demeter,  206. 
attributes,  affiliations  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  207. 

Tritons,  on  Archaic  Greek  gems,  41. 
Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs?,  47. 

gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  74. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  111,  114. 
attributes,  affiliations  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  204. 

Trojan  horse,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems, 
114. 

Truth,  how  represented  on  Gnostic 
gems,  141. 

Tryphon  (gem  engraver  to  Polemon, 
King  of  Pontos),  123. 

Turning  mechanism,  for  drill  and  wheel 
in  gem  engraving,  274. 

Turquoise,  284. 

Tyche,  on  Hellenistic  gems,  80. 

(Fortuna),  on  early  Roman  gems, 
99. 

on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  109,  111. 
on  gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  230. 
identified  with  Dea  Roma,  241. 

Tydeus,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  67. 

to  be  identified  only  by  name,  267. 

Typhon,  how  pictured,  247. 


INDEX 


423 


Ulysses  (see  Odysseus). 

Urania  (Muse),  how  pictured,  211. 

Aphrodite  Urania  (Venus  Victrix) , 

220. 

Vaghi  (Renaissance  gem  engraver),  179 

Valentinus,  Gnostic  philosopher,  135, 
140. 

Valerio  dei  Belli  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  175,  PI.  XXXI,  12. 

Vasari,  on  Renaissance  gem  engraving, 
173,  174. 

Vases  or  urns,  on  Minoan  gems,  25, 
27. 

Mycenaean  gems,  29,  31. 

Melian  stones,  35. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  42. 

gems  of  Best  Period,  56,  58. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  68,  69,  73. 

Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  104. 

Graeco-Roman  gems,  117. 

Veiled  female  heads  on  ancient  gems, 
believed  in  Mediaeval  times  to  he 
Madonnas  and  Magdalenes,  159. 

Veiovis,  attributes,  affiliations  and  how 
pictured,  241. 

Venus  ( see  Aphrodite ) . 

Venus  Genatrix,  219. 

Venus  Mylitta,  on  Mithraic  gems,  133. 

Venus  Victrix,  signet  of  Julius  Caesar, 
6,  221,  291. 

popular  on  Graeco-Roman  gems, 
111,  118,  221;  on  gems  of  Later 
Empire,  126. 

Vere  (modern  gem  engraver),  189. 

Vertumnus,  attributes  and  how  pic¬ 
tured,  240. 

Vesta  (see  Hestia). 

“Vicentino,  II”  (Renaissance  gem  en¬ 
graver),  175,  PI.  XXXI,  12. 

Victory  (see  Nike). 

Virbius,  on  early  Roman  gems,  93. 

attributes  and  how  pictured,  267. 

Virgin,  the,  pictured  on  Byzantine 
gems,  148. 

Sassanian  Christian  gems,  152. 

Virgo,  on  Graeco-Roman  gems,  117. 

(See  Astraia.) 

Virtus,  attributes  and  how  pictured, 
243. 

Vowels,  seven,  on  Gnostic  gems,  142. 

combinations  of,  on  Gnostic  gems, 
143,  144. 

Vulcan  (see  Hephaistos). 

Waldev  (modem  gem  engraver),  184. 

Warner  (modern  gem  engraver),  189. 


Warrior,  holding  head,  90. 

writing  on  shield,  91. 

Warriors,  on  Minoan  gems,  27. 
Mycenaean  gems,  31. 

Archaic  Greek  gems,  42. 
Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  scar¬ 
abs,  47. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  49. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  57. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  68,  70,  74. 

Early  Roman  gems,  90,  97. 

Weber,  L.  M.  (modem  gem  engraver), 
184. 

Wheel,  used  in  gem  engraving,  273. 
Whitley  (modem  gem  engraver),  189. 
Wickstead  (modem  gem  engraver), 
189. 

Williams  (modern  gem  engraver),  189. 
Wings,  types  of,  on  Minoan  gems, 
28. 

gems  of  Greek  Middle  Ages,  33. 
Melian  stones,  35. 
often  given  to  deities  on  Etruscan 
scarabs,  66,  67. 

Wise  (modern  gem  engraver),  189. 
Wolf,  on  early  Roman  gems,  94. 
Women,  on  Minoan  gems,  28. 
Mycenaean  gems,  31. 

Greek-Persian  gems,  50. 
gems  of  Best  Period,  56. 

Etruscan  scarabs,  68,  69,  70, 

72. 

Hellenistic  gems,  81. 

Early  Roman  gems,  97,  104. 
Sassanian  gems,  often  with  chil¬ 
dren,  150. 

Woolf,  Aaron  (modern  gem  engraver), 
187. 

Wray  (modern  gem  engraver),  186. 
Wreath,  on  early  Christian  gems, 
128. 

Xerxes,  signet  of,  287. 

Yeo  (modern  gem  engraver),  189. 

Zagreus,  horned  child  of  Zeus  and  Per¬ 
sephone,  identified  with  Dionysos 
in  Orphic  cults,  224. 

Zeus,  on  Etruscan  scarabs,  67,  69. 

(Jupiter),  on  Graeco-Roman  gems, 
112,  114. 

gems  of  Later  Empire,  126. 
with  his  eagle,  believed  in  Me¬ 
diaeval  times  to  be  St.  John  the 
Evangelist,  159. 

attributes,  cults,  affiliations  and 
how  pictured,  199. 


424 


INDEX 


identified  with  Veiovis,  241. 
Zeus-Dionysos,  of  Crete,  identified  with 
Sospolis,  214. 

Zodiacal  signs,  on  gems  of  Best  Period, 
58. 


Graeco-Roman  gems,  115,  117. 
Sassanian  gems,  150. 
relations  of  certain  deities  to,  ac¬ 
cording  to  Manilius  and  Firmi- 
cus,  117. 


Plate  I 


MINOAN  GEMS 


Plate  II 


MYCEN.EAN  GEMS 


Plate  III 


GEMS  OF  THE  GREEK  MIDDLE  AGES  AND  ISLAND  STONES 


Plate  IV 


ARCHAIC  GREEK  GEMS 


Plate  V 


ARCHAIC  GREEK  GEMS 


Plate  VI 


GRiECO-PHCENICIAN  AND  GREEK-  PE  RS I A  N  GEMS 


Plate  VII 


GEMS  OF  THE  BEST  PERIOD 


Plate  VIII 


GEMS  OF  THE  BEST  PERIOD 


Plate  IX 


GEMS  OF  THE  FINISHED  STYLES 


Plate  X 


GEMS  OF  THE  FINISHED  STYLES 


Plate  XI 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


Plate  XII 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


Plate  XIII 


ETRUSCAN  SCARABS 


Plate  XIV 


HELLENISTIC  GEMS 


Plate  XV 


HELLENISTIC  GEMS 


Plate  XVI 


HELLENISTIC  GEMS 


SK-ito* 


Plate  XVII 


EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS  (ETRUSCAN  INFLUENCE) 


Plate  XVIII 


EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS  (HELLENISTIC  INFLUENCE) 


Plate  XIX 


EARLY  ROMAN  GEMS  (COMBINATION  PERIOD) 


Plate  XX 


GR.ECO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


Plate  XXt 


GRAECO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


Plate  XXII 


GR.ECO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


Plate  XXIII 


GR/ECO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


Plate  XXIV 


GRAECO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


Plate  XXV 


GR.ECO-ROMAX  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


Plate  XXVI 


GRAECO-ROMAN  GEMS  OF  THE  EARLY  EMPIRE 


Plate  XXVII 


GR.ECO-ROMAN  GEMS  AND  GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


Plate  XXVIII 


GEMS  OF  THE  LATER  EMPIRE 


Plate  XXIX 


gems  of  the  later  empire,  mithraic 

AND  GNOSTIC  GEMS 


Plate  XXX 


SASSANIAN,  BYZANTINE,  MEDIAEVAL  AND 
RENAISSANCE  GEMS 


Plate  XXXI 


RENAISSANCE  GEMS 


Plate  XXXII 


MODERN  GEMS 


cr 

K 


o 

% 


8.  Any  person  who  refuses  to  pay  fines,  or  who  wilfully  violates  any  of  the  foregoing 
rules,  or  who  abuses  the  privileges  of  the  library  by  unbecoming  conduct,  forfeits  thereby  all 
right  to  the  use  of  the  library. 

9.  Persons  not  resident  in  Allred,  giving  satisfactory  reference,  may  at  the  discretion  of 
the  Librarian,  be  allowed  to  take  out  books  on  such  terms  as  the  Directors  may  fix. 


